My Gay Best Friend
by Mr. Invincible
Summary: Annabeth, daughter of a renowned architect, is dealing with both best friend and boyfriend issues. Percy is trying to make his way to the top of the architect business world. Once Percy realizes that connections with Annabeth will secure his position, he poses as a gay man, gaining access to her home and friendship. What he didn't foresee was falling in love with her. AU/AH.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: Annabeth is dealing with a betrayal of her boyfriend and best friend. To add to the problem, she's broke. Percy is a young businessman trying to make his way to the top. By accident, he meets Annabeth, learning that connections with her family could secure his position in the business world. When Annabeth rents out her house, Percy takes her up on the offer, posing as a gay man to win her trust. What happens when he accidentally ends up falling for her instead? AU/AH… Characters will be OoC.**

**Yes, it is based on another Korean drama. And this is actually the first story I have outlined chapter by chapter till the climax. Hopefully I can stick with it that long, but that all depends on reader support.**

**Currently, it is outlined for 46 chapters, but it should eventually hit 60+. Give or take 5 chapters. Let's see how it goes. I'm so pumped to write this story. It helps while I have writer's block with **_**The Green Eyed Marine.**_

**Rated T for some language, innuendos, and suggestive themes, but nothing explicit.**

**This story is also not meant to offend any people who are in fact gay, lesbian, or bisexual. **

**Disclaimer: I own neither the characters nor the plot, but I did change some things up.**

**That was long A/N.**

* * *

_**Annabeth Chase- 7:00 A.M.**_

Annabeth had stayed up till three o'clock last night working on the finishing touches to her latest project, the ultimate piano bench. She had only managed to stay up that late with the help of her black coffee, the staining rings left from the bottom of the cup were visible on her sketched designs for the project.

She had just added the final polish to the mahogany colored wood which would give it the sleek, fresco gleam of a new piano bench. Just as she had applied the last layer, a sudden bout of sleepiness had hit her, forcing her to fall asleep on the workshop bench.

Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!

The sound of the incessant damned alarm only made her even more sluggish in the morning as she groped around the wooden table, trying to locate the source of nuisance. The bright sunlight had filtered in through the sliding windows, causing her to squint and only making her task of finding the alarm clock more difficult.

She reluctantly got up from where she had previously fallen asleep. With her face shying away from the alarm clock, she hesitantly approached it, hitting various buttons until the noise finally came to a stop.

Just when alarm had been successfully turned off, the reminder on her iPhone began to beep impatiently. Annabeth carefully removed the object from her overalls' pocket, muttering unintelligible words upon reading the message. It was from her fellow colleague and employee, Will Solace.

_Annabeth, you gotta get down here in thirty minutes. The other stalls are already beginning to set up. Don't be late…And dress up a bit more formally than you normally do, please._

Formal? What nonsense was he talking about? There was nothing wrong with a pair of sweatpants and a matching hoodie, was there? Yet, she sighed in defeat. If she wanted to make a good impression on her customers, she might as well wear that LBD that Luke had bought her last month. It was formal enough, and furthermore, Luke had promised to drop by on his way to the meeting.

Annabeth had finally secured a place at the annual furniture convention after two years of trying futilely. This year had been a breakthrough. And maybe, just maybe, with the orders she received for her furniture designs, she might be able to survive the next few months without having to shamefully face her father and declare being broke.

As she was about to leave the house, she tripped over the edge of the rug which had not been straightened. To her dismay, she found one of her heels to be completely broken, snapped at the bottom. Not having time to worry about it, she threw on a pair black boots she found deep in her shoe closet. They weren't formal per se, but they'd do.

Fifteen minutes to go she thought to herself as she rushed down neighborhood as she tried to locate the nearest taxi stop. She slung her shoulder bag on in a more comfortable position as she sprinted five blocks away to the taxi stop.

Annabeth sat herself down impatiently at the wooden park bench nearby, waiting for a taxi to come nearer before hailing it. The sprint along with the heavy bag had already taken away half her days' worth of energy. As her stomach growled, she realized she was yet to eat her breakfast. She dug into her bag and pulled out various items which she looked at with disgust: a rotten banana from who knows when, a moldy green orange, and a fruit by the foot. Settling for the fruit by the foot, she began munching on it eagerly as she spotted a yellow cab pull up by the curb.

She immediately rushed towards it, already pressed for time, when she saw another hand grasp the handle of the door at the same moment. What? Wasn't she the only one waiting? Annabeth looked up to meet the eyes of her 'opponent'. A pair of sea green eyes flashed her an impatient look as they both made a move to open the door.

_**Percy Jackson- 7:00 A.M.**_

Percy had had a restless night, spending long hours at his office the night before in preparation for today's architect conference located at the Waldorf. He had been checking and rechecking every single detail on the report he was to present in front of the gathered crowd. By the time he had finished, it was past midnight with no one left in his office except for his employee, Nico di Angelo, who had begun sleeping at his own desk.

To add to his problems, the lights had been turned off due to a power loss. As for the backup generator, that too apparently had suffered some damage, allowing for only the lamp on his desk to work.

He had entered the apartment quietly in order to not wake up his mother. No such chance of course. The watchful eyes of Sally Jackson gave her son a reprimanding look as she shooed him off to bed immediately, insisting he better get a good night's rest for the presentation.

To his surprise, Percy had woken up to someone else's arms draped across his chest, almost in a possessive manner. He sighed in irritation, pinching his nose bridge as he turned to look at the girl next to him: Calypso.

He carelessly flung the girl's arm away from him as he got up to go shower. That one movement was enough to wake her up as she sat up immediately. Percy noted her black negligee with some amusement and snorted. The girl got up defensively and whined, "Percy, come back to bed."

Percy rolled his eyes, "When'd you get in?"

"About two," she replied, "My flight got delayed yesterday, so it came in later."

"I didn't say you could share my bed," he said, playing along with her antics.

"But, where else would I go?" the way she asked made Percy wonder if she actually was clueless.

"I don't know. A hotel maybe?"

"No! I didn't want to. I wanted to see you."

"Does my mom know you're here?"

"No…"

Percy heard a knock on his door as Sally Jackson asked impatiently, "Percy, are you talking to yourself? Get dressed and eat quickly. Looks like traffic is going to be bad today."

"Coming mom," he called back. He turned back to Calypso, "Look, you shouldn't be here. My mom can't see you here."

"But she loves me," Calypso whined.

"Yeah, well, too bad. I don't want her to start imagining things," Percy retorted, shrugging on a clean, pressed white shirt. He retreated into his closet to find a pair of matching slacks, closing the door behind him so he could change.

"Why are you so mean?!" the girl pouted. "Aren't you even moved by the amount of thought I put into my outfit? Don't I look so much hotter? You haven't seen me in two weeks, and you still act this way!"

"Your negligee? Nope, not a single bit. And if you ask me, two weeks was too short for you to be away."

"You jerk, are you gay or something? No man would not be moved by my appearance."

"Didn't you know? I am gay," Percy added with a teasing wink, walking out of the closet. Calypso was like a sister to him and frankly, thinking of her as a romantic interest had never crossed his mind. It was weird. After all, they had known each other since they had been five. Throwing in love to the mix would just make it awkward.

"I hate you, Perce."

"Love you too," he returned. He took her by the shoulders and started pushing her out towards the balcony, "Now be a good girl and stay there till someone finds you." He closed the door, not locking it, but he knew she was dumb enough not to realize it. Percy chuckled slightly at the scene in front of him as she banged on the pane of the sliding door.

He closed his own bedroom door behind him as his mother handed him a cup of coffee and an apple, "You took your time in the bedroom. Anyway, I thought you'd be late, so I went ahead and packed breakfast."

"Thanks mom. You're the best," with a peck on her cheek, he proceeded down to the garage with his portfolio in one hand, and his model of his design in the other. Upon arriving and turning on the engine of his Challenger, he realized that his gas tank was empty. Having a few choice words to say, Percy kicked the car with his foot once, while still balancing his model, before giving up. Time to catch a cab.

Catching a cab was a new experience for Percy, having to have never done it before. There was no way he would ever enter a bus. Besides, carrying an architectural model and a portfolio onto a bus was a nightmare that gave him shivers at the mere thought.

He had been walking down the street near the bus stop when he spotted a cab pull up. Immediately, without second thought, he ran up to it, securing both his belongings in one hand. As he reached for the door, his hand hit another.

The girl looked up at him with her deep gray eyes filled with impatience. "What are you doing?" she asked indignantly, the eyes becoming darker and darker by the second.

"Catching a cab, what do you think?"

"This is my cab."

"I got it first."

"I saw it first."

"Your point? I said I got it first!"

"Your arms are longer!"

"Sucks to be you."

Unknown to both of them, another person had walked up on the other side of the cab and had entered wordlessly. As the cab pulled away, two looks of dejectedness followed it before the two turned back.

"Jerk! I'm already late. Ah, Will's going to kill me!"

"That's your problem, not mine."

"Hmph!" Annabeth stalked away from the impolite man, settling to take the bus instead. As she stood in line with the remainder of the crowd, she noticed the jerk coming in her direction, standing right in front.

"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded.

"Waiting for the bus."

"Do you not see the line?"

He didn't reply as the sound of the tires screeched to a halt in front of him. He flashed her a one-sided smile before entering in front of the long line of passengers. By the time she had entered the bus, she noted that all the seats were taken…except for the one near _him_ of course.

"Move over," she said, not bothering to glance at him while she spoke.

"Uh, no. Can't you see it's occupied?" he gestured towards the model of the building sitting to his right.

"Don't you think you're a little old to be playing with toy houses?" she mocked. "Besides, that house didn't pay a ticket for a seat."

"Too bad, it just so happens that this 'toy house' is what pays my salary."

Annabeth was getting ticked off. She was already losing her patience, and this guy was doing nothing to help. She remained standing where she was. He smirked, realizing he had won the argument. Oh how she wanted to punch him in his weak spot!

The remainder of the bus ride, she spent feeling very self-conscious. Many times, she found him staring at her…more like at her butt. She considered confronting him but was in no mood to do so.

At the next stop, the bus lurched to halt, causing Annabeth to lose her balance. It was almost like slow motion as she found herself tumbling on to the seat next to her. Percy's hands shot out protectively in front of his model, his green eyes dark with horror.

"Noooooo!"

Annabeth felt the model smash into pieces as she landed on it with a thump, but what happened before was even worse.

"You just touched my butt, you pervert!"

* * *

**Tell me what you think. I have the next chapter typed up but won't be posting it until I get some response from you guys.**

**I'll try to update **_**The Green Eyed Marine **_**when I don't have too bad a writer's block.**

**Today's also the summer solstice.**

**Anyway, read, review, fave, follow for updates.**

**~TJ**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to those who reviewed, faved, and followed. On to the next chapter. **

**I'll admit that the story is slow, but that's why there's 46 chapters so far. The entire series it's based off of is 16 hours long, so… That explains the length of the story.**

**Also, today is the birthday of the actor who portrays Percy's character in the actual drama.**

**FlorenceBradbury: No, Percy won't be one of those guys, but his 'gay partner' will be. ;)**

* * *

"_You just touched my butt, you pervert!"_

"Woman, could you shut up! You just effin' ruined my model. How am I supposed to do my presentation?"

Annabeth got up, dusting off her black dress. She found chunks of the roof of the model stuck to her dress with super glue.

"Give me those," he snapped, taking them from her hand. The rest of the ride was followed by an almost eerie silence as neither looked at the other. Percy fumbled around his pocket until he found his phone, "Nico, man, look. Get me a glue gun and super glue. No, it's not fine. Some chick sat on the model we worked on yesterday. Yes, it's destroyed, but that's all we can do."

Annabeth glared at him pointedly as he referred to her as a 'chick'.

To say the remainder of the day got better for Percy would have been a lie. He sat on the waiting area couch with his face in his hands when Nico ran over. "Here's the glue," he panted, out of breath, making Percy wonder how far he had to run to get the supplies.

"Thanks man."

"You think you can finish this before we go up?"

"I wouldn't bother trying," a voice came from behind. Percy swore under his breath upon recognition of the voice. The other man chuckled, "What was that Perce? Did I just hear you swear?"

"Not now Luke. Don't have time to deal with your cynicism."

"Hey, I'm just being realistic right now. Don't be mad, be glad."

"Shove off," Nico said.

"Shut up di Angelo. I came here on a friendly note actually."

"What do you want?" Percy turned to face Luke, noticing he had his two goons, the Stoll brothers, with him.

"Boys,"

Travis and Connor Stoll seemed to have a competition as they fought with one another to grab a hold of something in the bag. They fished out an envelope which flew out of their hands and landed on the table in front of Nico.

Nico picked it up and looked at in surprise, "You're getting married?"

"Tomorrow," Luke replied cheerfully, "Thought you two loners could use some good food once in a while. Oh, your entire dump of an office can join too. What do you have? Six employees?"

"Seven," Nico muttered through his teeth.

"My bad."

"Look, we have stuff to do, so if you and your sorry face would just leave," Percy said with a mask of concentration on his face as he moved the pieces of his model back in place with agile fingers.

"Whatever dude. See you at the meeting. Prepare to go down," Luke smirked as though he knew something that the other two didn't already.

"Does it look good?" he demanded Nico.

"It should survive the presentation."

"Damn the dumb blond. She must be a ditz or something."

"Dude, chill. You need to relax before the presentation. Otherwise you're going to lose it. What's done is done. Now, go and make Poseidon Corp. proud. And show does Hermes losers how much they suck."

The conference room was filled with people by the time they took their seats towards the front. Rows and rows of foreigners and global visitors had come to witness the building of the new art museum to be built in NYC.

"That's a lot of people," Nico muttered, turning slightly yellow.

Percy gulped once before shaking himself of the fear, "You think? Just be glad that I'm the only one presenting."

The introductions to the topic were being made by Chiron Brunner, the head of the Olympian Architect firm and the man in charge of overseeing designs and construction policies.

"Friends and visitors," the man began with a bellowing voice, "Many of you are here today to witness the final round of selections for the Ancient Greek Museum to be erected here in New York shortly. We have with us five worthy candidates lobbying for the position and renown that will come with being the winner. So, without further ado, I present our first finalist, Mr. Luke Castellan of Hermes Inc."

Luke took up the podium, adjusting it to his preferred height before speaking, "I want to thank you all for joining us today. Before I start, I just want to provide some background information on my company…"

"He's just doing some self-promotion," Nico hissed.

"He might as well…" The remainder of Luke's presentation was drowned out by Nico's snide remarks every five minutes or so.

At one point, due to a technical difficulty, the audio went off. Resolving the issue took a good ten minutes before a rather embarrassed Luke continued his presentation. The claps were deafening by the time he had finished, the loudest coming from his father, Hermes, at the adjacent table.

Hermes Castellan sent Percy a sly look, as though silently challenging him to do better than his son had.

"I don't see what was so great about that," Nico grumbled. "His father probably did all the real work."

"His father did do all the real work. Luke's never actually succeeded by himself in the business world."

"And next, we have young Mr. Percy Jackson representing Poseidon Corp. here today."

Nico nudged him once, "Break a leg…Not literally."

"Thanks Nico," Percy rolled his eyes before walking up to take his place at the microphone. Chiron Brunner smiled once at him with a twinkle in his eye, "Good luck, boy."

Percy stared out into crowd once, surprised by the surge of confidence that came from looking at them.

"My name is Percy Jackson, and I am here on behalf of my company, Poseidon Corp. Upon receiving the proposal for this new art museum, I began to ponder on what the construction would entail. A simple yet more refreshing design that is both cost effective and aesthetically pleasing.

Taking these factors into consideration, I didn't want to forget quality. What sets this design apart is that very thing, quality. This structure is meant to last not only in this lifetime, but also for generations are to come. That's what museums are for. Duration. They are meant to last long, preserving the artwork produced by the creative minds of contemporary society for posterity.

Keeping this in mind, I began my initial sketch of preliminary designs," At this point, Percy gestured to the projected screen next to him, going over in depth particulars that had caught his eye when developing the project. Little did he know Chiron Brunner looking at his design intently with great interest.

By the time he had finished, the applause was even greater than that of Luke's. The grim look on Hermes' face was enough to prove it.

"You did it man! We are so going to win. Up top!" Nico was beyond ecstatic at the prospect of winning after the remainder of the finalists had gone. "Did you see Mr. Brunner's face? He was totally hooked."

Luke came up behind them once more, a coffee in his hand, "Don't sound so certain. You haven't won yet. The entire panel of judges has to approve, not only Brunner. Jackson, don't be counting your chickens just yet."

Percy ignored him, urging Nico in the opposite direction, "It could have been better. If only the model wasn't broken."

"Dude, better? That was amazing already. How modest can you get, seriously? We are going to win this."

Percy didn't look convinced. Luke may not have all the brains, but Hermes made sure that he got what he needed. He was a world class lobbyist and had made a name for himself. Percy knew, from previous experience…with his late father. To put it simply, the Castellan family was not on good terms with the Jacksons.

"C'mon Perce. They're going to announce the winner in five minutes. We should probably head back before to get our seats. And do something about your hair. It looks like a mess. You can't go up to receive the award like that," Nico tried to adjust Percy's hair for him when Percy batted it away.

"Leave it alone, man. It's untamable."

The crowd had filtered in as Chiron Brunner once more took the podium, an envelope in his hand, "And now, to see who our panel has deemed fit. I want to thank all our finalists today for coming out here. Even though there is one winner, we look forward to working with you next time. And now…"

He opened the manila envelope with trembling fingers, sliding the sheet out slowly. His eyes seemed to momentarily register pure shock and outrage as he read out the name. He cleared his throat before speaking, "The winner…the winner is Luke Castellan and Hermes Inc."

Nico slammed his fist on the table, swearing deeply, "Damn bastard. He cheated."

Percy, on the other hand, remained calm, not saying a single word.

* * *

**I hope the story is interesting enough. The drama gets pretty heated quickly… And the whole awkward Percy/Annabeth meeting thing starts soon enough. **

**Make sure to read, review, fave, and follow for faster updates.**

**I have two more chapters written, so you know what you have to do if you want them to be uploaded. **

**~TJ**


	3. Chapter 3

**Once again, I want to thank all those who reviewed, faved, and followed. Yes, characters can be OoC.**

* * *

_**Annabeth Chase— 10:30 A.M.**_

After the encounter with 'the mad pervert', Annabeth had had just about enough. This had been her first big opportunity and the jerk had to go ruin it with his pretentious, cocky attitude. Not only was he cocky, but condescending too.

He dressed it too with a clean pressed buttoned up white shirt that smelled like it had come straight from the dry cleaners. The slacks were black, making him look like some type of waiter…had it not been for the coat, Annabeth would have assumed that's what he was. That coat… Was that silk she saw on the sides?

Needless to say, meeting the guy had been a pain in the neck she could have dealt without. She had just managed to make it on time to the convention center, only to find that Will had set everything up for her already.

"I thought you might be a bit rushed for time," he shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly.

Annabeth gave him a quick hug before throwing her messenger bag on to a nearby seat, "What would I do without you?"

"That's what I ask myself sometimes," Will muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

"Any customers drop by yet?"

"A few curious old woman, and with the looks of them, they looked like they had arthritis. I doubt any of the pieces you have here would have been useful for them."

"You could have tried, Will! Most old people have pianos."

"Hey, I'm not a people person. I just manage your accounts."

Annabeth rolled her eyes at his excuse. It was true he was generally shy and reluctant to talk, but couldn't he let that go for the sake of business?

"Has Luke dropped by yet?" she inquired.

"No, he sent you those flowers," he muttered incoherently, almost as though he was angered at the mention of Luke. He pointed at vase of roses sitting on one of the piano benches. "He said he was too busy but that he'll take you out later."

"Oh," Annabeth tried to hold in her disappointment. The two hadn't been on a date since the week before last and seeing a man like Luke was difficult as it was with his busy schedule.

"Why do you bother, Annabeth?" Will asked suddenly.

"Hm, what do you mean?"

"You're like a lost puppy when you're with him. It seems one-sided. Besides, if he can't even make spare time to see you… This is your big day, and he cares more about some stupid convention he attends more or less every day? I don't believe it."

"You're jealous that you don't have a supportive girlfriend, aren't you? Look Will, with a busy person like Luke, you have to make some compromises in the relationship. See, he sent me flowers even. As his girlfriend, I understand that this is a big priority in his life is, and that I'll be there to support him. Now quit complaining and help me market these."

"You do realize his architect convention is upstairs, right?"

"What?!"

"He seriously could have dropped by any time he wanted."

"Will, stop, won't you? He's busy. I'm sure he'll drop by later for lunch or something. Besides, if he won the competition, then he has so much to prepare for with the Director of the project."

"Excuses…"

"Will…" she added in a warning tone.

"Alright, alright. I get it. What Lukey wants, Lukey gets."

The next hour or so passed by uneventfully, if anything, slightly more awkward than usual. Will seemed to have been put in a bad mood after the conversation with Annabeth and refused to even answer the small talk that she attempted. Eventually, Annabeth too gave up, focusing on trying to get more customers.

A few kids dropped by in curiosity, deciding it was the opportune moment to play on the benches. Of course, she got a few glares from the surrounding stalls for having such a chaotic, noisy product. She shooed away the children, pleading with them to bring back their parents. Of course, they never did.

Her friend, Rachel Dare, had dropped by with her son. Buts she had immediately left saying she had some errands to run when Annabeth had asked for her help in advertising.

She had given up all hope at this point when she saw two men standing in front of her stall. One stood with his arms crossed over his shoulders, the other with an appraising look with a hand to his chin.

"You know man, this could be helpful. We should get one," the man on the right said.

The other man, whose arms were crossed, looked at the product disdainfully, "Do you know how to play the piano, Nico? Besides, this material looks so shoddy that if you sat on it once, it'd break in an instance."

"Perce, you're being too harsh. The workmanship on this piece is rather extraordinary. Look at the exquisite details on the legs."

"If you call polishing mahogany wood as extraordinary detail," the other man retorted cynically.

Annabeth's sour mood only augmented with their conversation. She couldn't see much of their profiles where she was sitting behind her desk, so she decided to get up; ready to give the man a piece of her mind. What she was not ready for was who she saw. It was the pervert from the bus!

Before she could retreat safely back to the comforts of her desk, he had spotted her, "You?!"

"What do you want now?" she snapped back.

"This is the girl who broke the model," Percy said to his friend, ignoring Annabeth completely. The other man, previously identified as Nico, nodded, "Ah, I see."

"You call this workmanship?" he asked her, gingerly picking up one of her older pieces, a jewelry box. He tapped it once, noting the echo. "Doesn't seem too solid."

Annabeth pinched the bridge of her nose, "I'm really sorry, but I'm no mood to deal with your crap right now. So if you will go right this way…" She pointed in direction of the exit sign, hoping he would take her up on the offer.

He smirked instead, "Is this how you treat your customers? It's a wonder you sell anything. C'mon Nico. I think our business here is done."

Annabeth huffed at the retreating figures, "That man makes me so mad!" Will happened to pop his head out of the storage closet at the moment, wondering if she had indeed gone mad. His inquiring look earned him a glare as she returned to her desk, legs crossed and her hands grasping the handles of the armchair tightly.

"Looks like she's going to blow," Will mumbled under his breath so that his boss wouldn't hear.

The next hour passed by quietly which Annabeth had to appreciate after the confrontation with Percy. During this time, Annabeth fantasized about her next date with Luke. Where would they go next? They hadn't gone to the mall lately. Maybe the beach? Or maybe one of those five star restaurants he was always going on about. Whatever be the case, she was eagerly anticipating spending more time with him. They had only been dating for a half year, but Annabeth felt like she had known for over a lifetime. Just the thought of seeing him sometimes made her giddy on the inside.

The clock throughout the convention hall read out the time to be noon. Annabeth still held on to her belief that Luke would come back to take her out for a quick lunch before going back to his meeting.

Will shook his sadly when she declined his offer to go eat out for lunch; it was as though he almost pitied her. By the time 12:30 rolled around, Annabeth began to feel hungry, her stomach growling in protest. She considered going to go grab a quick wrap and come back, but she didn't want to miss Luke if he came by.

At last, her patience was rewarded. She spotted his blond head walking by the stalls in direction of her own. His blue eyes attempted a smile but instead just turned down nervously.

"Luke?" she asked with concern.

"Hey…Annabeth," he replied while rubbing the back of his neck.

"Something wrong?" she continued. Oh no. He didn't win. That was it, wasn't it? Oh poor Luke. But she was going to help him through it. Annabeth threw her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. "I'm sorry," she mumbled.

Luke was appalled, "You're apologizing to me?! What for?"

"Your conference today. I take it that it didn't go so well from your expression. Don't worry Luke. There's always next time."

"What? No," he tugged his collar nervously, "No, the presentation was great. Hermes Inc. is the next designer of the new art museum downtown."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah seriously."

"No way!"

"You doubted me?"

"Not a chance. I knew you would win it. But you should be happy, you look so down."

The pained expression returned to his face as he took her hands in his, "Come with me." He led her to the nearby coffee shop still within the convention complex. "Take a seat," he ordered, pointing at one of the window-side benches.

"Want something?" she asked. "I'm starving. I haven't anything all day except for the fruit by the foot I had for breakfast."

"No, I'm good, but listen, Annabeth."

"Yeah?" she asked with curiosity, her gray eyes round with admiration for him. The look only reminded Luke of an innocent, naïve puppy. Damn it, Annabeth. Why did she have to make it so difficult on him!

"We've been dating for the past half year, correct?"

"Yup, six months, two weeks, and counting," she replied enthusiastically.

"And you know how I normally don't date girls longer than three months and that generally speaking, you're not my type of girl."

"But you've changed," she finished for him.

"About that…" he got up. Annabeth immediately followed suit. He fished around his pocket for what he was searching for. A coin dropped in the last minute which he leaned down to pick up.

"Oh my god…" Annabeth stammered. "You…"

"What?"

"Are you proposing to me right now?"

Now where had she gotten that idea? That's when it struck him. What a compromising situation he had gotten himself into. She was standing up while there he was kneeling on the ground, "I…"

"Luke, I don't know what to say. This seems so sudden."

"Annabeth, no wait. Let me explain," But before he could in fact explain, he heard footsteps coming to a stop in front of him. Luke only had to look up to see the smirking face of his rival, Percy Jackson.

_**Percy Jackson— 12:35 P.M.**_

After meeting the girl for a second time that day, Percy had gone around the expo, visiting the various stalls. He was pleased that the girl was flustered once more with him.

"You seem to have a knack for pissing her off," Nico noted.

"The feeling is mutual I assure you," he retorted.

"Are we going to roam around here all day?"

"Till about lunch. I have to go talk to Leo back at work about something after that about some of the other proposals we got for construction sites."

So, that's how the pair ended up roaming around the convention center, killing time with nothing else to do. That was until Nico piped up again, "Hey Perce, when are we going to eat. I'm starving. Buy me a cheeseburger or something."

"That means we'd have to go outside the convention center to buy it. How about you settle for some coffee? I saw a coffee shop nearby. You just need it to stay awake, don't you?" Nico scowled in Percy's direction but didn't bother protesting.

Percy ordered Nico a plain black coffee despite the latter's constant glares and demand for something sweeter. "You're hyper enough. You don't more sugar. Just be grateful I bought you the drink."

"Cheapskate."

"What was that?"

"Nothing, you're a great boss."

As they turned to return, Nico prodded Percy hard in the shoulder.

"Dude, what was that for?"

"Pimp, a.k.a Cheating Bastard, at nine."

"What the hell are you going on about now?"

"Look, it's Luke with that girl from earlier."

Percy looked in the direction Nico was pointing and found the two people he detested the most at the moment standing/kneeling awkwardly by one of the window benches. "What the hell is he up to now?" The pair walked over to where the awkward couple stood.

Annabeth was blushing furiously while Luke was no better.

"Nice shade of beet red you got there, Luke," Nico taunted, as they stood in front of the two.

Annabeth seethed at Percy who was yet to say a single word, "You again? Are you trying to ruin my life? First the bus, then you diss my work, and now…What are you going to do? Ruin my proposal?"

_Proposal? _ Percy thought to himself. The gears in his head were turning at top speed now. But hadn't Luke just given him an invitation just this morning to his wedding? And wasn't the wedding supposed to be _tomorrow_?

Percy let out a low whistle when it clicked. Here he was with one girl and getting married to another one the next day. _That two timing son of a bitch_…

* * *

**More random Percy/Annabeth encounters will come soon, but these beginning 7-8 chapters set the entire conflict in the first place. How they meet is important in the development of their relationship. The entire plot is based on misunderstanding after misunderstanding. **

**Anyway, make sure to fave, review, and follow.**

**~TJ**


	4. Chapter 4

**Once more, thank you to those who have reviewed, faved, and followed so far.**

**And now, time for a random disclaimer: I own neither the characters nor the plot. Just putting two and two together.**

* * *

_**Annabeth Chase— 12:40 P.M.**_

And there he was once more. At this point, Annabeth had had just about enough with Mr. Percy-Pervert-Stalker-Jackson. He was everywhere: the cab, the bus, the convention stall, and now this? Who was he to witness Luke proposing to her?

Luke wore a shocked mask on his face, "Annabeth, you know this guy?"

"Sadly enough, yes. He was the douche that ruined my morning and outfit," she pointed to the various super glue stains on the backside of her dress.

Luke stood up, obviously starting to get a bad knee from kneeling all that long. He dusted off his pants as he stood to face his opponent, "What do you want now, Jackson?"

"Oh, nothing. Nico and I were just strolling by when we saw you. Thought we'd say hello."

"Wait, Luke, you know him too?"

"Annabeth, meet Percy Jackson. We were childhood friends growing up. Now we're more of competitors. Dear old Percy right here just lost to me in the final rounds for the art museum conference."

In Annabeth's eyes, Percy didn't seem to be put off by this title. He simply looked amused. Nico, on the other hand, was glowering at Luke. If looks could kill, this was it.

"Well, it looks like you two are busy. See you later, Castellan," Percy gave the former a knowing wink before exiting the coffee shop. Nico stuck up his middle finger, muttering profanities under his breath.

_What was that all about_? Annabeth was curious as to what she had just witnessed, but now she knew. Percy Jackson did think he was some big-shot after all. From what she had seen, he was just a world class conceited jerk intent on ruining her day. "Luke, you were about to say something?" she asked hesitantly.

"Forget it. I'll talk to you later. Maybe call you tonight or something for dinner."

"Alright, sounds good!" she nodded cheerfully in acceptance as he too left. Annabeth couldn't help but feel a little morose at the thought. So close. But there was always dinner to look forward to. Besides, that would give her more time to prepare and look presentable enough.

_**Percy Jackson— 2:00 P.M.**_

Percy had tried his best to not let the disappointment of losing get in the way of his work. He knew the best way to tick Luke off was to not show any signs of backing off or defeat. Like Mr. Brunner had said before, there were always more chances.

At present, Percy was waiting for Leo to run off the printed copies of the last few Excel files on the computer, deciding which of the projects were actually financially feasible.

Leo took his seat opposite Percy, spinning around in his chair once as he handed the papers to his boss, "You know Percy, you are really cruel. Did you know that? How could you have locked Calypso outside like that?"

"Simple."

"If I had a girl like that by my side…"

"You want her? Take her. She's a bothersome pest."

Leo immediately put on a serious face, "How could you say that? She's not a pest! She's an angel sent from the heavens. How could you even come up with such a thing? Calypso is an ephemeral beauty, like a vixen waiting to be loved. As Victor Hugo once said, 'To love beauty is to love light.' "

"Great Leo. As poetic and romantic as it sounds, I don't give a damn. Learn to separate work and your personal life. Now, go finish up the project or you'll be fired."

The look on his face resembled Calypso's pouty one, "Why are you so harsh?! You wouldn't really fire me? Would you?"

"Watch me."

Leo exited Percy's office looking depressed. God, what had gotten into him today? Percy had been quite productive in managing to irritate at least half the people he had met today. Could this day get any worse?

_**Annabeth Chase—4:00 P.M.**_

"Wait, repeat that again…" Rachel asked her slowly, as though her brain was unable to comprehend.

"He almost proposed to me…" Annabeth replied just as slowly as though she were talking to a five year old child. Which, in this case, she kind of was. Rachel's five year old son seemed to have grasped the fact before his mother had.

"He…asked you…to marry him?"

Annabeth nodded, "Well, actually, not quite. He had gotten down on one knee, all ready to propose when the jerk interrupted."

"What jerk?"

"Remember the guy I had mentioned when you dropped by earlier today by my stall. The one from the bus? Yeah, he knows Luke because of the architect conference. He had the nerve to just stand there and grin while Luke was trying to propose. Luke must have gotten flustered or something and said he'd call me later for dinner."

"Wait, let me get this straight. Luke…almost…proposed to you?"

Annabeth threw the throw pillow on her couch at Rachel, "That's what I said three different ways." Rachel dodged the pillow but had a look of disbelief on her face, "Unbelievable."

"What's wrong with that?!"

"You've only known each other for six months."

"But I feel like I've known him longer. I love him, Rach."

"Love…Don't give me that. You hardly know him."

"Well, what about Thalia then?"

"What about her?" Rachel questioned.

"She's getting married tomorrow to a guy she met just a month ago!"

"She was always rash, but Annabeth, I thought you were better than that. Speaking of your roommate, where is Thalia? She didn't drop by your stall, did she?"

"How could she? She has to do the final preparations for her wedding tomorrow. You know, lights, cake, food, getting her dress."

"That's what she gets for hurrying up her wedding," Rachel grumbled. "She should have taken things slower. Don't you think it's weird we've never actually met the guy she's marrying?"

"We'll see him tomorrow. They've been busy with the preparations. Really, why bother with the formalities. Thals is our best friend. We'll get to see her more after the wedding too."

Rachel rolled her eyes, coming over to sit by her friend, patting her once on the shoulder, "Annabeth, my dear friend, I hate to break it to you, but you are so innocent. It's slightly pathetic."

"Shut up," Annabeth shoved her friend to the other side of the couch. At that moment, the door swung open, revealing their bride-to-be friend.

"Speak of the bridezilla," Rachel whistled taking a look at Thalia. "Don't you look glowing?" The way she said was almost sarcastically, bitter in a sense.

Thalia looked at her in surprise, "What's gotten into you?"

"Oh nothing. Just mad we still haven't met the groom."

"You will soon enough," Thalia let out a soft chuckle, her eyes focusing on Annabeth. Annabeth didn't seem to notice as she glared pointedly at Rachel, "That's what I told you."

Rachel ignored her and was more eager to pass on the latest gossip to Thalia, "Guess what Thals. Our little Annie's growing up. Tell her Annabeth."

"Rachel," Annabeth groaned, "We can wait till after it happens."

"Till what happens?" Thalia demanded, her curiosity now piqued.

Rachel gave Annabeth a nudge, prompting her to go on. Annabeth sighed once, "Luke was about to propose to me?"

"He did what?" Thalia repeated. "He proposed to you?" There was queer edge to her voice as she spoke, something that made it quaver.

"Almost proposed," she corrected. "But, he was interrupted."

"Aren't you happy for her?" Rachel demanded, noting the perplexed look on Thalia's face.

"I was just taken by shock. Congrats Annabeth," Thalia gave her an automatic hug as though she were a robot or something. "Excuse me for a moment."

Thalia went to the room she was renting from Annabeth. Her eyes betrayed her emotions and her hands suddenly clammy. She took out her phone with shaky hands once she had entered and closed the door behind her.

Rachel got up, "Let's go listen!" Annabeth immediately shot her down by dragging Rachel back to the sofa, "Where are your manners? Sit down and give her some privacy."

_**Thalia Grace— 5:00 P.M.**_

Thalia felt betrayed. He had promised he would tell her today. Was he chickening out? Getting cold feet? Whatever his deal was, he was going to have to solve it fast before the wedding. For God's sake, it was tomorrow!

She punched in the numbers deliberately and listened to the ring as she waited for him to pick it up.

"Hello?" the voice on the other end answered as though she had interrupted him from sleeping.

"Luke, listen carefully. I don't know what you're playing at, but you promised."

"Thalia, babe, what's wrong?"

"Annabeth!"

"What about her?"

"You haven't told her yet. She's under the impression you proposed to her."

"I'll tell her."

"When? The wedding is tomorrow."

"I promise. I'll take her out and tell her at dinner today."

"You better tell her Luke Castellan…Or else, that wedding tomorrow will turn into a funeral."

* * *

**Yay for loyal best friends and boyfriends. **

**Make sure to read, review, fave, follow.**

**Comment your thoughts in the box below. I know I have some international readers, so feel free to review in your language. If it's French or Spanish, I can understand 99% of it. If it's another language, let's hope Google Translate doesn't butcher it for me. I'll try to make a habit of responding to questions.**

**I'm working on the next chapter right now, so make sure to review.**

**~TJ**


	5. Chapter 5

**Thank you to those who have been loyally following, faving, and reviewing every chapter. It means a lot to authors.**

**Annabeth will be OoC at times. **

**I personally like this part of the story. And, it's also the longest chapter so far.**

* * *

_**Annabeth Chase— 5:45 P.M.**_

Thalia walked back into the room with a forced smile on her face as Rachel looked on suspiciously. Annabeth, on the other hand, was more oblivious than Rachel was to the situation at hand.

Rachel continued to stalk Thalia as she took her place beside Annabeth. The silence that resulted only lasted about for a second when the shrill shriek of a cellphone permeated the air. The sound was long echoing in the girls' ears even after picking up the phone.

"Change your ringtone," Rachel grumbled pointedly at Annabeth.

Annabeth merely scowled as she spoke into the phone, "Hello?"

"Hey Annabeth, it's me, Luke," the tone of the voice on the other end was difficult to decipher, but Annabeth wasn't one to being paying attention to that. She was more excited that Luke was calling her.

She covered the microphone part of the cellphone as she eagerly told her friends, "It's Luke!" Rachel gave her a thumbs-up while Thalia remained impassive on her seat on the couch, her legs and arms crossed.

"Yeah, hey," she replied in excitement. "Are we still on for dinner tonight?"

"That's why called. How about meeting at the Capital Grille on Wall Street at about 7:00? I'll meet you there," Luke said.

Annabeth couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that he wasn't coming to pick her up. This was going to be an important day after all. She cleared her throat so he wouldn't hear the disappointment in it as she spoke, "Sounds good. Formal venue?"

"Hm, whatever. It doesn't matter how you dress up. Just be there at 7 sharp."

"Oh, alright… See you there," she mumbled, now slightly hurt at his lack of care. Why did he make it seem like such a casual date when he was taking her to Capital Grille to propose?

"Well?" Rachel pounced on the opportunity immediately after Annabeth got off the phone.

Annabeth tried not to blush as she spoke, containing herself from bursting out, "He said he wanted to meet at the Capital Grille for dinner tonight."

"He said what now?" Thalia mumbled too quietly for the other two to hear.

"Which one?" Rachel pressed on eagerly.

"The one on Wall Street."

"Oh my god, Annabeth! I'm so excited for you," Rachel pulled her friend in for a big hug in response, both of them squealing at the prospect of Annabeth's engagement. Rachel pulled back to give Annabeth a once over, clicking her tongue, "This won't do. You, my friend, need a make-over."

Thirty-five minutes later, Annabeth found herself waiting for a cab to take her to the restaurant. Rachel had helped curl her honey blond hair so that it looked natural enough. She had put on minimal amounts of make-up, going for the fresh look with just the basics: eyeliner, mascara, some foundation, and blush.

As for her outfit, Annabeth donned a simple white lace dress and light gray pumps to go with it **(A/N: It's like that Taylor Swift outfit…If you know which one I'm referring to)**. The cab dropped her off promptly at 6:55 P.M. in front of the restaurant entrance.

To her surprise, she found Luke to be there on time. Despite being the one to normally set up the dates, Luke was never keen on keeping up with said time. But today was different, even his mood was more serious. The setting felt ominous as the waiter took Annabeth to where Luke was already seated.

Luke had on a blue tie and black suit today, quite different than his normal cream or gray colored ones. In a sense, it was somber with a sepulchral undertone to the whole thing. Annabeth sat down cautiously, waiting for Luke to speak first.

Luke had already taken the courtesy of ordering the restaurant's specialty of the day: rare cooked staked with a side of fried potatoes and Caesar salad.

The waiter brought out the dishes within minutes of Annabeth's arrival. She dug in eagerly to her meal, savoring each bite, anticipating what Luke had to say. Luke, on the other hand, was in no mood to eat.

He fiddled with his hands uncomfortably, wiping them on his pants so Annabeth wouldn't notice their clamminess. Good thing he was wearing black today so as to not leave sweat stains. As she looked up at him expectantly, Luke gulped. He wasn't ready to do this. Looking at her sweet, innocent face, he was reminded once more of the girl he had met six months, taken by her beauty and naivety.

And here he was, about to break her heart. Luke cleared his throat, "About earlier today…"

Annabeth blushed a little at the mention. Luke continued, "I didn't have a chance to tell you what I had wanted to. If you would allow me, I would like to do it all at once, so try not to interrupt. This is hard enough as it is." She nodded once in understanding, signaling for him to go on.

"As I said earlier, we've been dating for about six months. And to be honest, it just hasn't been working out," Luke didn't dare glance at Annabeth as he spoke in fear of seeing her reaction.

"I like you, a lot, in fact. But as friend. To me, you're like that little sister who's there the whole way through trough hardships and good times both. Frankly though, I don't think it's going to work out if that's what our relationship is like."

Annabeth spoke slowly, having already processed what he was saying, "So, you want to break up with me?"

Luke's eyes flashed for a second in worry, "Well…yes, but that doesn't mean we won't be friends, right? Hey, like I said, you were always my little sister. Nothing more than that. We can still hang out and everything. We can go out to dinner like this. Nothing's really changed if you look at it. We just won't be 'dating' any more. Just be like brother and sister."

"So, those six months meant nothing to you?" she retorted softly. "Nothing at all, Luke?"

Luke looked queasy, opening his mouth to speak, but Annabeth had more to say, "You're friend-zoning me now? Why didn't you tell me from the start? I would wait for you to call every day sometimes just to hear your voice. Ask Rachel, ask Thalia."

Luke winced at the mention of the last name but didn't dare say anything.

"While working, I would fantasize over we would go next on our date or how I could surprise you for our anniversary. You meant a lot to me, Luke. And now, you want to be friends?" Annabeth's voice had increased in pitch with her growing incredulity.

The man facing her pinched his nose, "Look, I didn't want to say it, but for a sense of closure and clean break, let me put it this way. I don't love you. I was never in love you. To be fully honest, I found you to be a bit pathetic in the way you would wait for me, the way you would apologize when _I _was the one late. I don't want a girl like that."

"Then what do you want?" Annabeth tried to subdue her anger and not take out in front of the entire restaurant.

"I want a girl who will satisfy my needs. You're just not the right girl. Annabeth, you're one of those girls who need love, care, and sensitivity. And to the best of my abilities, I can't provide for that. I don't know how to deal with girls like that. Like I had said before, you are not my type of girl," he stressed the last part, hoping it would sink in.

"A girl who fulfills your needs?" her voice a bit venomous when she realized what he had meant. "Is that all you want from a relationship? To sleep around with people? If that's what you had wanted, I'm glad we're breaking up. I despise how people like you think you can manipulate those around you to satisfy your wishes," Annabeth stood up, pushing the chair back. "Well Luke, thank you for dinner. I'm leaving. And I hope you find the perfect woman for you."

She left him staring dumbfounded as he remained sitting. Annabeth waited till she could hail a taxi. In the meanwhile, she flipped through her contacts, finding the one person who could be of some source of solace to her.

"Hey Will, mind meeting Old Town Bar in a half hour?"

_**Annabeth Chase— 8:30 P.M.**_

Annabeth was drunk. That's all there was to say. She made no sense whatsoever when Will Solace found her half-passed out at the tavern. He sat down in the seat next to her, patting her awkwardly in the back in consolation.

He wasn't quite sure what was going on, but he had a feeling that it had to do with Luke. Her blond hair hung like a curtain around her face as she pushed away his hand. "Who are you…?" she slurred.

"Annabeth, it's me, Will," he replied, realizing how she really was drunk if she couldn't even recognize him.

"Oh. Will?!" she slapped his arm once. "What are you doing here at this time? At what happened to your eyes. You look like one of those aliens from Toy Story."

Oh good, she was hallucinating too. "You called me, remember?"

"Riggghhhhttt… Like I would do that."

"Yeah, actually," Will tried not to be hurt by her words as he brought his stool closer. The bartender offered him a drink which he refused, but when the man gave him a pointed glare, Will ordered one for the sake of not being killed by the buff man.

At this point, Annabeth's words weren't fully coherent, but he could pick out words here and there.

"So, what happened?" he inquired. "Why are you like this?"

"Luke," she said simply. It was difficult to hear with her head in her arms, lying against the bar table and her face turned the other way. So, his suspicions were confirmed.

"What'd he do to you?" Will asked urgently.

"He broke up with me."

Will could have sworn he had heard a sob, but he wasn't too sure with all the noise surrounding him. He downed the glass of beer that the bartender had set in front of him in one go, asking for another one, finishing that too in a heartbeat. He didn't even know what he was drinking yet continued.

As he drank the fifth one, he listened keenly to Annabeth's story, the lights beginning to flicker, or maybe it was just his eyes. Annabeth too was starting to tremble as she spoke.

"It's just too much…Will. He said he wanted to be friends," she continued to slur.

"I know Anna, I know how it is. To love someone and not be loved back," he replied back in the same drunken stupor.

"What do you know about one-sided love?" her gray eyes curious suddenly.

"I know that I've experienced it. For example, I've loved yo—" Will didn't finish the sentence when he noticed Annabeth slump forward, hitting the table again. "Maybe we should go home?"

He managed to help her up, both her arms around his neck. His legs buckled as he tried to hoist her up. This was going to be harder than he thought with both of them drunk. He hailed a cab. Not remembering Annabeth's address at the moment, he told the taxi driver to take them to the nearest hotel.

The pair stumbled out ungracefully at their stop: a local Hilton hotel. The receptionist handed him a room key upon having swiped his credit card, directing them towards the elevators.

By the time they had entered the room, Annabeth was completely unconscious. Will dropped her unceremoniously on the large cream colored king sized bed, trying to make sure she didn't hit the board.

He found himself slouch down on the carpet, his head banging from all the alcohol he had just consumed. Will shook his head several times, slamming it against the wall to clear it. But it was of no use.

Instead, he decided to take the time to go look at Annabeth. Just when he was about to confess his love for her did she have to pass out. Why then of all times? He looked at her sleeping, angelic face as the honey blond curls framed the face. They appeared to be sweaty now as they laid crushed, plastered up against her forehead.

He found himself approaching closer and closer until they were inches apart. Just one kiss. That's all there was to it, right? He was so close that she could have felt him breathing on her.

That's what did the trick. Annabeth's eyelids fluttered open as the hot breath hit her face, quickly trying to make sense of the situation. Her voice was shaky as she spoke, "Will, what are you doing? Will?!" She bolted up in the bed, pushing Will by the face.

He noticed that his hands had unwillingly crept up to his shirt collar, already unbuttoning the first two buttons. He was terrified as Annabeth glared at him; she was dangerously mad.

"What the hell were you doing?"

"I— I…"

"Save it. I thought we were colleagues, friends, nothing more…" her hand was on the handle by now. She pushed down on it, waiting to open it.

Will flinched, "No, Annabeth, wait. I love you." She paused as she turned around, her voice skeptical, "You love me? Is this how you show your love? By trying to rape me? I've had it for tonight. I'm leaving."

"No…"

Annabeth paid no heed, closing the door behind her. She had noted her disheveled hair and zombie like appearance in the mirror on the wait out. As she got ready to take the elevator, she hear another cry.

"No, don't leave me man! You can't just leave me. All I did wrong was to love someone. Don't leave me here alone."

"Watch me," another voice bit back bitterly. "Now, let go of me."

Annabeth faced the direction of the voice, surprised to see the compromising situation in front of her. There was a man on the ground, only wearing a pair of pants and wife beater. His arms were secured around the leg of another man, hugging it tight.

Annabeth's eyes traveled up to the second man's face, her face registering shock when she saw who it was. It was none other than her personal stalker, Percy Jackson.

_**I could stop and leave you here, but I'll continue. Percy Jackson—7:15 P.M.**_

Percy Jackson wasn't accustomed to listening to his subordinates, but decided to take Nico at his word.

"Dude, you got to do something about Leo. He's been pining away thinking about Calypso all day. I asked him to make me a simple Excel document listing all our current clients, but I got a love poem addressed to Calypso instead!" Nico looked ticked. It was already well past office hours and Leo was still at his desk, staring at a picture of the girl.

"What do you want me to do about?" Percy spun around on his chair to face Nico. "Do you have a solution?"

"I don't know! Do something. Anything. He's like a lovesick donkey," Nico raged.

Percy snorted, "Alright, alright. I'll take him out and talk with him about it. I did tell him he'd be fired if he didn't finish up the draft I asked him. I doubt he has." And so it began, Percy took Leo to the Weber Grill at the Hilton hotel.

"Look man, I don't want to fire you, but if you keep slacking off, I'm gonna have to," he began the conversation.

Leo turned to face him on the bar stool, holding a can of Newcastle in his hand. He waved it around in the air as he spoke, "You aren't serious are you? It was one day, Perce!"

"Don't call me that," Percy snapped back. "And it's not just one day. Every time Calypso comes back from abroad, it's like you can't function."

"That's not true," Leo replied almost as though he was whining. "I told you it's not true!"

"Leo, if you continue this, I have no other choice. It's against company policy."

Leo gulped down his beer, requesting another can before he continued his plea, "But boss, it was an honest mistake. I promise tomorrow will be better."

"Did you get the files I asked you to?"

"No…"

Percy gave him a pointed look, "Nico was complaining how you hadn't done what he had assigned you either."

"Why do I have to report to Nico? He's a jerk. He thinks he can order me around."

"That's because he can," Percy replied in a matter-of-fact tone. "His position is higher than yours, so you will be reporting to him."

"I don't want to!" Leo's retort was childish as he finished his who-knows-what number beer.

"I think you've had enough to drink. Let's go."

"I want more."

"Do you want to pay for it? I'm not paying for any more."

"Why are you so cheap?" Leo got up, his balance uneven. His legs moved like they were jelly, wandering without a sense of direction.

Percy steadied him as they walked out the door, "You all right man?"

In response, Leo promptly puked up his dinner, the mess getting on the front of his shirt and the carpet beneath. Percy pushed Leo away from him, the movement only causing the other man to vomit again, this time all over Percy's new black suit.

"Shit!" Percy muttered to himself. "Why now?"

He propped Leo up against the wall as tried to wipe off some of the bile in the sink. He had to shrug off the jacket, forcing it under the faucet as he muttered profanities under his breath. And was he going to do about Leo? He couldn't go home like that and considering Percy had no idea where Leo lived, calling a cab was no option.

Percy decided on getting a hotel room. Of course, Leo would be paying for it when he checked out the next day. The woman at the lobby batted her eyelids when he asked for a room. Percy tapped his finger on the counter in an agitated manner. She handed him the key, slipping him another piece of paper.

He took one look at it, his suspicions confirmed. He tossed the paper back to her disdainfully. Percy then went to pick Leo off the ground where he had last left him, supporting him by the shoulder. The receptionist lady's eyes round when she saw Leo leaning on Percy, her nose wrinkling.

Percy hauled Leo up to the bed, the stench of the vomit on Leo's shirt getting to him. Knowing that the smell could cause anyone to gag, he quickly removed Leo's shirt, tossing it on the floor for the latter to deal with it later. All he had to do now was leave.

On the way out, he found a mirror. Digging inside his pocket for a Sharpie, Percy began writing on it: _You're fired._ With a chuckle, he tossed the Sharpie on the ground, proceeding to leave the room.

What he didn't anticipate was Leo's sudden consciousness. Just as he was about to close the door behind him, he heard Leo rush behind him, throwing himself on the ground to grab Percy's foot. He began crying hysterically, "No, don't leave me man! You can't just leave me. All I did wrong was to love someone. Don't leave me here alone."

"Watch me," Percy bit back, having had enough of the other man. "Now, let go of me."

When Percy looked back up from the ground, he found a pair of gray eyes judging his situation silently. Well if it wasn't Annabeth Chase.

The blond haired girl looked at him with a mix of shock and curiosity, "You too, huh? Looks like we're on the same boat away from love."

"What are you talking about?" he snapped back.

"Boyfriend issues," she replied simply.

* * *

**Note: She said 'boyfriend issues' when referring to both of them.**

**Whoo. 3.7K words. I think that might be a personal record for me. I want to thank all of you have kept up since I started this story.**

**Also, I've gotten a lot of praise for how fast I update. I'm saying this now so you won't kill me later. I am currently doing this as a way to procrastinate with summer assignments. Who seriously wants to read about the sexual reproduction of dikaryotic hyphae in fungi?**

**Anyway, I'm updating a lot now since I want to make some decent headway into the story. As of most of July till the end of August, I will be travelling to a place with very limited Internet connection. So, if I don't update, you know why. If I do have time, I will do my best to find accessibility to the Internet.**

**Those who followed and favorite, make sure to leave a review. And if you didn't do either of those, still review. This chapter ONLY took 3 hours to write…**

**~TJ**


	6. Chapter 6

**As some of you may know, and this pertains the story somewhat, DOMA (Defense of Marriage Act) was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court. This more or less says that banning same-sex marriage is unconstitutional and cannot be banned in states.**

**And now, moving on to the story. I want to thank all those who took the time to review, fave, or follow. I know this last chapter got over 200 views, but only some bothered to comment.**

* * *

_**Percy Jackson— 11:10 P.M.**_

_"What are you talking about?" he snapped._

_"Boyfriend issues," she replied simply._

"Excuse me?" Percy demanded, the incredulity clear in his voice, "What did you just say?"

"Boyfriend issues," she repeated, looking at him like he was crazy. Annabeth pointed at the drunken, now once again unconscious, man on the floor, still hugging Percy's legs.

Percy shook off Leo in frustration, trying to prop him up against the wall for someone to find later. "Look, you're misunderstanding the whole situation. It's not what it seems like."

"Right…"

"You don't believe me?" he asked defensively. "I told you that this man and I…Forget it, he's just an employee who needs to learn his place and time."

"So, you rejected his love?"

"Are you trying to tick me off?" he retorted. "I said I am not romantically involved with that man!"

Annabeth looked at the drunken man once more pointedly, deciding not to push the issue further. Besides, who was she to meddle in the love life of some crazy maniac?

"If you insist…"

"Why do I even bother proving anything to you," he replied in frustration, following her into the elevator that had now opened up. "And I don't think you have any rights to make judgments. Considering the fact that you were about to be proposed to just this afternoon, and now, you're at a hotel with another man, it could raise some eyebrows."

"Why don't you mind your business, and I mind mine. I've seen enough of you today, and frankly, at this point, I don't care about your opinion."

"Ouch," he whistled as the elevators dinged, opening up again. The two stood by the hotel entrance, once more in competition to get the cab first. The fresh, cool air was a nice change from the stuffy atmosphere of the hotel room, not to mention the stench of vomit still on Percy's suit.

Annabeth turned to him, debating whether or not to ask him, "Would it be too much to ask if I could have the cab first?"

Percy snorted, "What would make you think that I'd do that?"

"Because you could be a nice gentleman willing to help a lady," she replied hopefully.

He rolled his eyes in response, "Oh, now I'm a gentleman. No can do. By the looks of you, I would never want to help you."

"Jerk," Annabeth muttered in irritation. "God, I'm going to look awful at Thalia's wedding tomorrow. Thanks to someone I might add."

Percy glared back at her, "How is this my fault?"

"I need to get home soon!" she said, not noticing the queer look that had appeared on his face; it was as if the name had wrung a bell.

"Wait, whose wedding?"

She looked at him in surprise, "Why do you want to know?"

"Don't argue. Just what is the name?"

"My friend, Thalia Grace."

Percy let out another low whistle, too low for Annabeth to hear. Not only was Luke a two-timing bastard, so was his fiancée. He should have known. The two were a match made in heaven. Percy knew he had recognized the name from somewhere before. It was from the wedding card, but he had had no idea that the girl was also friends with the blond over here. '_Great friend_' he thought sarcastically.

It looked like Luke had broken up with her, hence her drunken appearance, but she had no idea about the bride to be. More like vice versa. She knew the bride, but had no clue it was her recently made ex-boyfriend. He had a sudden, compelling urge to warn the girl.

"Look," he started. "About this wedding."

Annabeth looked at him sharply, "How does it pertain to you?"

"Just let me finish for once, will you? Just take it as some friendly advice in the future. I know Luke broke up with you."

Annabeth opened her mouth but shut it under Percy's glare.

"As I was saying, don't be disheartened by the break-up. The man's not worth it. Trust me. I've known him for quite some time now. And for the wedding, you were anticipating being proposed to, and tomorrow is a friend's wedding, don't be envious. You'll realize you can do better than Luke. I know this sounds weird now, but it'll get better. You'll understand soon enough."

She looked at him speechlessly. Who was he, of all people, to comfort her? "What?" she asked, the only thing she was able to day.

"Looks like there's a taxi here for me," he flashed her a grin, showing off his perfectly straight teeth as the car pulled up in front of him. He got in, and with a wave, he closed the door behind him. Annabeth stomped her foot in frustration. Today just plain sucked.

In the cab, Percy pulled out his phone to make a phone call. He knew Nico would be up at this time of night, so why not? He felt like Luke's wedding tomorrow was going to get a whole lot more interesting than he had originally anticipated. Of course, that wouldn't be the reason he would tell Nico.

"Hey, Nico, man, listen. Yeah, I know what time it is right now. And no, I am not drunk. Leo was though. Anyway, look, we're going to Luke's wedding tomorrow. No! I am not drunk, you idiot. I am feeling perfectly fine. It's for the sake of the company. Hermes Inc. has invited all of the top level board members from Olympian Architect to his wedding. Yes, now do you get it? We can get on their good side if we get a chance to talk to them. And one more thing," Percy added, "Before I hang up here, make sure to dress presentably. We need to make a good impression."

_**Percy Jackson—10:00 A.M.**_

Percy had cleaned up well the next day, his OCD for cleanliness causing him to take a shower multiple times until he was completely certain that the stench had gone. He shuddered as he recollected the moment when Leo had thrown up over his suit.

He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them once more. Looking through his closet, he selected another one of his black formal pants, and donned a cream colored pressed shirt. His suit was pinstriped and his bowtie green. In attempt to tame his hair, he had combed it to the side, gelling it to keep it in place. After all, he had to make a good impression and couldn't afford to look like a hobo.

After dropping by Crate & Barrel to pick up a gift card for newly-weds to be, Percy managed to get to the wedding by 10:30 A.M. where he found Nico waiting for him by the steps. Nico had done a decent job cleaning up, deciding to sport a vest as opposed to a suit.

"Hey man, do you have a gift? I completely forgot about buying one!" he exclaimed as soon as he had spotted Percy.

"Yeah, no problem. I've got it covered. Picked up a gift card on the way here."

"You're a lifesaver."

"I know," Percy replied, no hint of modesty at all at which Nico grumbled.

"C'mon, wedding's going to start in a half hour or so. We should probably take our seats."

"I wanted to see if we could meet with some of the architects on the board first," Percy began before being interrupted by his colleague.

"Look dude, we'll have plenty of time for that later. For now, let's just get in there so we aren't fashionably late or something."

Percy consented to Nico's logic. The ground floor was surprisingly empty when the two men entered. They waited for the elevators to come down when Nico spoke up, "Small crowd, eh? And he was making such a big deal of it."

"They're probably all seated or something," Percy replied. He took a look Nico, noticing something was off in his attire, "Nico, I said dress properly."

"I am dressed properly!" he mumbled angrily.

"Your bowtie is crooked and you buttoned your vest incorrectly."

"I don't know how to tie a bowtie."

"Let me help you with that while you fix your vest buttons. They're all down one," Percy removed the bowtie, and then re-secured it around Nico's neck. He tucked one end in between Nico's neck and the other one, then folded the other end so that it resembled a bow.

Just as he was about to bring the first end of the tie back, the elevator dinged, opening on the main floor. A red haired woman with a young child at her hand stood agape. She immediately closed her child's eyes with her hands, as though the scene was something wildly inappropriate for the child's eyes.

"I'll just take the next elevator then…" she said, getting ready to press the button to close the door.

"No, it's alright. We're all done in here. You can come," Nico said cheerfully.

"You're done?" she asked dubiously. She shuffled in, moving as far away as humanly possible in the congested box. Percy mentally slapped his forehead, realizing what she had been implying. From an outsider's point of view, it could have looked like anything. And knowing woman, they always thought the worst.

He sighed, banging his against the elevator once instead of looking at the red-head's face.

_**Rachel Dare— 10:40 A.M.**_

Rachel knew Annabeth would show up late to the wedding considering that she had gotten in late last night. The other girl had called her at 12:30 A.M. to relate the news of the break up. In all honesty, it didn't come that big of a surprise to her. She saw it coming, and so should have Annabeth. But now, it was a done deal. Annabeth had cried constantly throughout the conversation on the phone.

She had comforted the girl, saying that attending the wedding might lighten her mood a bit. If only Rachel had known how wrong she was. She waited outside the entrance of the wedding venue to see if, by any luck, Annabeth would be there on time. The girl was always in a rush everywhere, losing track of time to her work.

After waiting a good fifteen minutes, Rachel had given up and decided to go to wedding chapel area. She was waiting for the elevator door when it opened to reveal two men inside. Both men had dark black, raven colored hair. The one facing her with pitch black eyes was fiddling with something on his chest, the other helping him.

Almost instinctively, Rachel placed her hand over her son, Tommy's, eyes protectively. Really? Those men had no decency. They had the nerve to do _it_ in a public elevator where anyone could get on at any moment?

She cleared her throat getting ready to press the button to close the door, "I'll just take the next elevator then…"

"No, it's alright. We're all done in here. You can come," said the one facing her cheerfully.

"You're done?" she asked dubiously, wondering if she had heard right.

Giving them the benefit of the doubt, she walked in quickly, taking a place as far away from them as possible. She still had Tommy's hands in her own.

The dark eyed one spoke up, "So, how did the meeting with Leo go yesterday?"

"Ah, I don't want to talk about that idiot again," replied the other. "He got drunk last night."

"I heard. He called me in tears last night afterwards. You wrote that he was fired on the mirror."

"After what he had done," he retorted.

"So, hotel room, huh? Couldn't think of something less scandalous?"

"Shut up!"

Rachel covered her son's ears as the men continued their conversation. The other man, whose face she had yet to see, gave her a brief glimpse before he turned to rest his head against the elevator.

Although the glance was brief, Rachel was surprised at how attractive she had found the man. His deep sea green colored eyes had seemed to bore into her own green eyes in that instant. Stop it Rachel! She was a married woman with a child who couldn't afford such thoughts.

Why did all the attractive ones have to be homosexual? The two men got off on the same floor she had. Were they also attending Thalia's wedding? She had never mentioned knowing these men before. And knowing Thalia, she would have talked given how gorgeous and Adonis like the men were.

The shorter one, with the black eyes, gave her a small grin before following behind his rather agitated, angry looking, but much handsomer partner.

Now, to find the wedding hall. She found a group of people gathered in front of a certain room. Their faces were filled with smiles as they pointed and laughed at the photos on the presentation board outside the room.

Out of curiosity to catch a glimpse at the groom, Rachel went to take a closer look. Her hand immediately flew up to her mouth upon seeing the wedding images. The groom was none other than Annabeth's ex-boyfriend, Luke Castellan.

This was the last straw in Rachel's book. Not only could she not forgive Luke for what he had done, but Thalia too? What had Annabeth done to deserve this fate? Rachel knew that she had to do something to stop it immediately.

She asked a nearby man for the directions to the bride's dressing room. As she approached it, she heard giggles coming from inside which stopped almost abruptly when a female voice spoke up.

"What if she comes? What will you do if she crashes the wedding?" the voice demanded. Rachel correctly identified the voice as Thalia's.

"Don't worry about it. I gave it to the Stolls to make sure they don't let her within 10 feet of the entrance. They're on the job."

"You sure?"

"Umhmm."

Rachel was disgusted at the sound which was coming from inside; she assumed it was them kissing. Not able to handle it any more, she broke in to the room, finding Luke carrying Thalia bridle style.

"Rachel?!" they both shouted in unison, Luke dropping Thalia from the position. Thalia gave him a murderous glare before turning back her attention to the interloper.

"Yeah Rachel! What the hell is this?" she demanded. "Are you serious right now? Do you two seriously have no shame? How could you betray Annabeth like this?!"

"Rachel, calm down," Luke began.

"Shut up, you a-hole. I heard enough about you last night, but you, Thalia Grace, I expected better of you. You've been her friend for the last ten years."

Thalia spoke up for the first time, "What's your point? He didn't love her, but I was there for him when he needed me. Annabeth was just a pathetic waste of ti—"

Thalia didn't have a chance to finish her sentence as Rachel promptly slapped the other girl on the cheek, leaving a red mark on the bride-to-be's face.

"You two are the worst kind of people in the world. You don't deserve a friend like Annabeth in your life," Rachel said with some finality. She stormed out of the room, taking out her phone to dial Annabeth immediately.

"Hello?" the voice answered on the other end.

"Annabeth?"

"Yeah."

"Listen, where are you?"

"I'm at the subway. There weren't any cabs nearby, so I decided to catch the subway."

"Stay where you are. Don't come to the wedding. It's not worth it."

"Rachel, how could you say that? It's Thalia's wedding. As in our best friend Thalia."

"Thalia, my foot…" Rachel muttered under her breath so that Annabeth couldn't hear.

"What's that Rach? Sorry, I can't hear you over the sound of the trains, but I'll see you in a bit. Wait for me,"

"No, Annabeth! Don't come…" But it was too late; the blond haired girl had already hung up on the other line.

Rachel turned to her son Tommy, crouching down to his level and brushing back his blond hair, "What's mommy going to do now? What do you suggest we do to keep Aunt Annabeth away, Tom-Tom?"

The five year old hugged his mother, patting her on the back as if to comfort her.

_**Annabeth Chase—11:10 A.M.**_

Annabeth knew that Thalia would never forgive her if she was late to her wedding, but there was no stopping the inevitable. Annabeth Chase was officially late for her best friend's wedding. It wasn't her fault that the train stopped at every single stop on the way. She rarely used that form of transportation and wasn't aware of the costs.

She knew she must look like a walking shipwreck after being squished inside with all those passengers. Annabeth quickly rushed to one of the bathrooms near the wedding chapel area to fix her hair, but redoing her makeup would take too much time.

She looked like a disaster, having woken up hung-over this morning. There were still dark circles under her eyes. Annabeth splashed some cold water on her face, hoping that would be enough for the time-being.

Instead of waiting for the elevator, she made her way up the stairs. Annabeth found Rachel waiting for her at the top with her son, Tommy.

"Rachel," she yelled out. "Have they started the wedding procession yet?"

Rachel looked panic-stricken, "No, Annabeth, let's go. I don't want to be here anymore."

"Why are you getting cold feet? It isn't like it's your wedding again."

"Anna, please," she pleaded.

"C'mon," Annabeth dragged Rachel up the stairs with her. By the time the two had arrived, the doors had been closed for the wedding ceremony and vows. There was no one monitoring the doors in sight, so Annabeth took it as a signal to open them.

Rachel tried to stop her, putting her hands on Annabeth's arms, giving one last try, but it was no use. Annabeth pulled the doors open. The bride and groom were already at the altar, their backs to Annabeth and the remaining guests.

At the sound of the doors opening, the surprised couple turned around, their jaw almost hitting the ground in shock upon seeing who it was.

Annabeth's heart almost stopped beating when she saw the groom standing next to who she had thought was her best friend. She uttered two simple words, "Thalia? Luke?"

* * *

**Another chapter over 3000 words. Wow, I'm getting better. Anyway, to those who read my story, **_**The Green Eyed Marine**_**, I updated another chapter earlier today. So, make sure to check it out.**

**To the remainder of you, make sure to review. This last chapter got over 300 views, but only about a dozen bothered to review. So make sure to fave and follow also. I don't want to be that guy who doesn't update till they get a certain amount of reviews, so just leave a comment in the box below, be it a flame or a compliment.**

**~TJ**


	7. Chapter 7

**Almost at a 100 reviews? Thank you to all my readers for the support. Continue with that support by reviewing, faving, and following.**

**And for those of you curious, this is based off the drama, **_**Personal Taste**_**.**

* * *

_**Annabeth Chase— 11: 15 A.M.**_

_Annabeth's heart almost stopped beating when she saw the groom standing next to who she had thought was her best friend. She uttered two simple words, "Thalia? Luke?"_

A pregnant silence in the room followed Annabeth's outburst. Neither bride nor groom had an adequate way to respond the girl's shock. Luke turned his head back in shame while Thalia had the nerve to look back at Annabeth equally.

The preacher was at loss as to what to do when Luke's father, Hermes Castellan, got up and muttered something into the other man's ear, most likely urging him to continue the ceremony.

Annabeth walked forward slowly, almost as though in a trance, towards the altar. Thalia's eyes continued to bore into hers. Her eyes were like that of Aegis, and if looks could kill, Annabeth would have been a goner. She stopped in front of the to-be-weds, giving them each a curious glance as though she couldn't understand.

"When?" she whispered.

Thalia rolled her eyes, "Do you really think this is important right now? What matters is that Luke chose me over you. And we, are getting married." Thalia stressed the last part clearly, but Annabeth was struggling to keep her emotions bottled.

Luke, on the other hand, was slightly more sympathetic, "Look, Annabeth, we'll talk about this later, ok? So, would you please leave before it turns into a fiasco? Stolls?" Luke asked the two brothers to escort Annabeth out, the two on either side of her, Annabeth didn't bother trying to resist.

Rachel, still standing where she had been before, gave Thalia one last dirty look before following the girl out. Hermes got up again, announcing to the crowd this time, "It seems as though we had a slight misunderstanding, but no worries. The wedding will continue."

_**Percy Jackson—11:30 A.M.**_

Nico had been silently laughing throughout the entire scene, unable to contain himself from the hilarity of it.

"Wasn't that the girl he was 'proposing' to yesterday. The weird one that sold furniture?"

"Looks like her," Percy replied curtly.

"Unbelievable. It's like karma biting back at Luke. That two timing bastard," his voice grew lower at the end, his face contorting into a mask of anger.

"Yeah…" Percy's attention was nowhere on Nico's bipolar rant/joy. He had other things on his mind. He couldn't believe that the girl had shown up, but then again, she had no plausible excuse for not showing up.

While Nico was still chuckling to himself, the rest of the crowd looked unsettled as the preacher continued with the remainder of the ceremony. Of course, Percy had no reason to pay attention to that. He had only come to make acquaintances with the Olympian Architect firm. He scanned the crowd, hoping to pick out a few members from his location.

To his great surprise, he found none other than Chiron Brunner, Vice President of Olympian Architect, just two rows in front of him. He nudged Nico once, pointing to the man. Nico understood immediately as Percy mouthed, "Right after the ceremony."

That was if only the ceremony had gone as expected, but the guests were subjected a rather 'pleasant' surprised as the speakers from the ceremony suddenly sputtered out due to external interference. No one could hear what the preacher was saying while the technicians attempted to reboot the systems.

As the speakers came back on with better clarity with before, what people heard shocked them even more:

"_You saw it right? How pathetic Luke is? He caused the whole situation and then told you not to make a big deal out of it. Be glad you're not marrying the loser."_

There was pin drop silence in the crowd before chaos erupted from the source of confusion. Percy couldn't place his finger on it, but the voice sounded very familiar.

Nico poked him once as Percy scowled, "It's the lady from the elevator. I'm sure that's her voice." He was right. It was the red-head from the elevator, but how was her voice on the speakers?

"_This man, up until yesterday, was my boyfriend," another voice said. It sounded shaky as though the person was restraining herself from talking._

Percy immediately recognized the voice as the blond haired girl. The murmurs in the crowd grew louder and louder as Hermes began yelling at the technicians to turn of the speakers. Various people began fiddling with them, only to increase the volume instead.

"_And the bride, Thalia, was my best friend for a decade. She was closer to me than family, Rachel. She was my closest friend. I hoped her well on her marriage day."_

By this time, others too had recognized the girl's voice. The crowd began filtering out of the hall when Hermes stood up, grabbed Luke by the hand, and dragged his son out. Luke managed to grab ahold of Thalia's hands moments before. The entire wedding crowd followed them out to the main foyer where security guards were scampering about, looking for the source of the issue.

"Check the audio station!" Hermes barked. "You fools!"

And right he was. The Stolls who had escorted Annabeth out were dragging her and Rachel out of a room in the corner where they had apparently kept the two girls out from the wedding. It looked like the whole event had been an accident the way which Annabeth's head hung in shame.

Thalia approached the blond-haired and red-haired girls, almost as though poised to go into battle. Luke was following short behind, yelling her name repeatedly which Thalia chose to ignore.

She stood in front of her former friends with her arms crossed over her chest, her teeth biting her lips as she looked Annabeth up and down in her disheveled state. Luke caught up to her, grabbing a hold of her arm which she roughly shook off.

"Are you happy now?" she directed at Annabeth, making the blond haired girl out to be at fault.

Annabeth wasn't to be outdone, "You didn't even have the guts to tell me in advance. But, I apologize for ruining your wedding."

"There's no need. I don't care anyway as there won't be a wedding. I won't have regrets," Thalia said coolly.

Rachel stepped forward, ready to slap Thalia once more when Annabeth grabbed her hand, "Don't Rach, it's not worth it."

Thalia scoffed, rolling her eyes in disdain at those she had once called friends. She turned around, leaving her wedding guests dumbstruck. Luke trailed after her with an apologetic look, "Thalia, you aren't seriously calling off the wedding, are you? Thals, wait babe, come back."

Annabeth simply stood there, not moving despite the fact that Rachel was tugging at her sleeve. Percy wasn't making much attention to the issue at hand like Nico was. As he had been doing at the wedding, he had been continuing to search for Mr. Brunner amongst the crowd, having yet to spot him.

What brought Percy's attention back to the commotion was when a member of dispersing crowd spilled coffee all over his suit in his rush to leave. Percy was seriously getting irritated with all the stains on his suit. The black coffee stained the cream colored shirt, leaving a nasty mark as it trailed down the jacket and to the pant leg.

Nico immediately pulled out a handkerchief and began dabbing away at Percy's leg. As he looked up, Percy noticed the red haired girl, identified as Rachel, looking at them suspicious once more. Percy immediately pushed Nico away, brushing the other man out of the way, "Nico, get off. We have to find Brunner."

The black eyed man looked up innocently, "But, you can't meet him with a stain like this on your pant leg. What will he think? You were the one all about good impressions."

"Shut up and help me look," Percy scowled. By this time, he noticed the foyer was empty as all the wedding guests had left, having not seen what they had come for, a wedding. He noted that Rachel was dragging the blond haired girl in one hand and her son in the other as they both went out the door. The blond, Annabeth, appeared to be struggling with her friend, trying to let go and go her own way.

As he looked on at the scene with some sense of pity, Nico jabbed him hard in the ribs, and whispered, "Look, Perce. That's him coming out of the men's room." Percy looked up, taking a step closer to approach the man when two other men intercepted Mr. Brunner instead, beating Percy to it.

The men seemed to be presenting Chiron Brunner with a folder of sorts. The other handed him a card which Percy presumed to be a business card. Nico hissed in frustration, "It's those guys from Hermes Inc. Luke must have set them up! Look how they throw themselves at him. It's sickening."

"That's what our plan was, Nico," Percy hissed back.

"We can't approach him directly!" Nico gestured wildly at the scene a few yards in front him. Percy noticed Mr. Brunner backing away as he refused the gentlemen, giving them a polite bow. He had only taken the business card out of politeness, pocketing it directly.

A queer thought struck Percy at the sight. He began with a slow voice, "Nico, do you remember how Mr. Brunner's car looked?"

_**Percy Jackson—12:15 A.M.**_

After getting a description of Chiron Brunner's car, Percy knew he had no time to spare. The man was about to take the elevator down the guest garage where his car was parked. Having located the emergency exits stairs to his left, Percy ran towards them, qualifying this as an emergency.

He told Nico to come down in ten minutes if he didn't call, telling him to keep Chiron occupied for an extra minute or two while he went down.

What he didn't expect was the parking lot to be so huge, yet luck was on Percy's side. Most of the cars from the wedding had already taken their departure, leaving only a select few cars behind.

With Nico's description of Brunner's car, Percy was easily able to single out the silverish gray 2013 convertible Mustang. It paid off to have someone like Nico that knew cars well. Percy got in his own blue Challenger, wincing at the cost he was about to incur upon it.

He silently apologized to the car before he turned the engine on, backing out slowly. Percy approached Chiron Brunner's car carefully. Taking one last look to make sure no one was in sight, he accelerated quickly, his car within inches with Chiron's. He knew he had done it when he heard the nauseating, yet satisfying crunch and thud that soon followed.

He deliberately parked in the lot next to him, opening the door of his own car. Just as he had expected. The opening of the car door so close to Brunner's car left a nasty scratch on the latter. The paint job was completely scraped off, revealing the black underneath. But that wasn't the main part, Chiron's right rearview mirror was completely sheared off at the impact. Percy's own car was in not better shape. His own car had several scratches lining it while the mirror had suffered some damage, though not as bad as Chiron's.

As he went to take a closer look, he took out of his business cards from the pocket of his coat, sticking it between the windshield vipers of Chiron's convertible. Just as he was about to return to his own car, Percy saw a figure approaching from behind him. The man gave him a curious glance as he watched Percy fiddle with the windshield.

When Percy noticed Chiron, his visage became immediately apologetic as he tried to profusely apologize for the 'accident'.

"Sir, I'm really sorry. I don't know where I was focusing. I was in a rush to get out of this wedding place that I was entirely reckless while driving the parking lot. My own car got damaged in the process, but don't worry sir, I will make it up to you."

Chiron Brunner looked at him thoughtfully as he went to look at the windshield vipers, "I see you've left me your business card."

Percy turned red slightly, "Yes, I thought you might need my contact info if you want to call regarding insurance for the car. I am completely willing to pay for all the damages."

But the other man held up his hand signaling him to stop. He gave him a knowing smile as he spoke, "Well Mr. Jackson, if you don't mind then, why don't you drop by my office tomorrow morning where we can…uhm… discuss the damages."

* * *

**So, what do you think of this chapter? Have an opinion? Yes, no? Leave it in the box below. I promise that the whole Annabeth and Percy moving in thing comes in the next 2/3 chapters. Be a little patient.**

**The story has a lot of friendship/romance fluff for the most part, and I found it really cute when watching. The real romance is the latter third of the story.**

**I know Thalia is portrayed pretty badly, but this is an AU. Plus, Rachel's always the bad guy, so why not Thalia for a change?**

**Anyway, like I said yesterday, if you read, make sure to leave a review, fave, or follow.**

**You know what to do.**

**~TJ**


	8. Chapter 8

_**Percy Jackson— Next Day, 10:00 A.M.**_

Percy rolled his car into the Olympian Architect parking lot. He had gotten the Challenger repaired the previous day after the disastrous wedding incident. After sending Nico back to work to keep an eye on Leo, he had serviced his car.

True to his word, Chiron had sent him an email within two hours of their encounter, giving him the details to his office and hours. Percy had brought along his current designs and working projects, just in case Chiron Brunner wanted to talk about something other than insurance cards and whatnot.

He politely waited outside the office which was located on the top floor of the glass building. The reception area was rather quiet with not many visitors. Percy flipped through the British magazine, _Architectural Design_, which he had found lying by the waiting room couches.

Percy rarely kept up with the magazines, normally handing over the job to either Nico or Leo, but he found interesting concepts that he further wanted to explore. His eyes stopped at an article that had been earmarked, curious to read further into it.

'_Back to our Roots  
By: Mona Farrell_

"_Who says ancient artwork is no longer present in today's world? Take a look anywhere. I dare you to find one city that doesn't have any hint of our forbearers," says Dr. Fredrick Chase, American Architect based in London. _

_The man has extensively studied the use of various Greek and Roman methods still found common in many Italian villas and across other European countries. But the influence doesn't stop there. _

_For instance, simply standing in the capitol of the United States, the District of Columbia, one sees that Greek and Roman architecture is omnipresent. From the U.S. Capitol Building to the Lincoln Memorial, there are occurrences of these ancient cultures everywhere.'_

Although curious to read more on Dr. Fredrick Chase's views, Percy was jolted out of his immersed state by the receptionist up at the front. She smiled warmly at him as she led him into Mr. Brunner's room.

"Ah, Mr. Jackson, delighted to see you," he began, shaking Percy's hand firmly.

"Pleasure's mine, sir," Percy grinned back at the older man.

"Do sit down," he ordered. "Care for some coffee, tea?"

"I'd have a coffee if that's alright."

The man asked his secretary to come back with two cups of vanilla mocha latte as they got down to business. Chiron began the discussion before Percy could get a word in, "About the car. Don't worry about it. I've gotten it fixed already."

"Sir, I…" Percy began to protest weakly, feeling slightly guilty.

Chiron immediately waved him down, "Don't worry about it. It's quite alright. It was merely an accident that could happen to anyone." He gave Percy that knowing grin once more. Percy simple hid his cough behind his hand.

"I can reimburse you for the damage sir. I really do apologize," Percy began once more.

Mr. Brunner simply gave him an amused grin, "Mr. Jackson, I insist, it's quite alright. You think I am not capable of handling such a small fee? It's all been taken care of. And do call me Chiron. It makes me much more relaxed."

"Might I ask why you wanted to talk to me?"

"Ah yes, about that Percy…Can I call you Percy?"

Percy gave him a quick jerk of the head signaling yes, wondering what the man was to say next. There was a twinkle in the man's eyes when Percy said yes, "Good, now that we're off to start on a good foot, I have to say, I was rather impressed with your speech the other day regarding the competition. Far more impressed than any of the others." Chiron's eyes narrowed, almost turning visibly dark at the thought.

"I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"I felt as though your designs had a lot of potential. They were clear, refreshing, invigorating in a sense how you seamlessly incorporate both classical and modern design into your works."

"Thank you sir."

"Chiron," he corrected. "Not sir."

"Sorry."

"As I was saying Percy, I was wondering if you were perhaps interested in our upcoming project. The art museum was a just a small extension of the firm here in the city, but we were planning resorts of sorts near Long Island. Ever heard of Montauk?"

"I've been there a few times," Percy replied. "The place is wonderful. All the evergreens near the coastline. It makes me feel as though I'm home some times. It's nice sometimes to be away from the city."

Chiron nodded understandingly, "Exactly. That's what we want our clients to feel to. Here at Olympian Architect, we were hoping to start up a themed resort near the Sound and Montauk containing various activities ranging from rock climbing to archery to horseback riding. We were hoping for a mix of cultures in a sense. We feel that people should have a chance to explore these places while still within the comforts of home-like location. What do you think?"

"I think it's a great idea."

"Are you up for it?" Chiron asked, raising an eyebrow as he spoke.

"Up for…?"

"You see, we are holding another bid, call it a competition of you will. This time, in lieu of the panel of judges, we will be inviting our prominent members from the country itself, and of course, if possible, we hope that our special guest will able to join us."

"Special guest?"

"Ah, but that's a secret that you will have to wait to figure out. All I want from you now is your confirmation of participation."

"Of course. I would be honored to join."

"Good," Chiron chuckled nervously before he continued, "I really shouldn't say much more, but I felt as though you could use a hint. Think big. Think of the mix of cultures: contemporary and classical." With that, he got up and held out his hand for Percy to shake.

As Percy walked out the door and back to his car, he thought carefully. Contemporary yet classical? Hmm, that sounded very much like the article on Dr. Chase. Percy quickly dialed up Nico's number, "Hey man, yeah it's me, Percy. Look, if you aren't too busy our anything, could you pull up some details on Dr. Fredrick Chase. He's an architect, and I came across some of his designs that could prove to be interesting. Yeah, that'd be great. Just take a look and email me something."

_**Nico di Angelo—11:15 A.M.**_

Nico had been in the middle of taunting Leo to do his work when Percy had called. He was surprised to find the other man's voice jovial despite the fact that he had gone in with insurance papers. Nothing good ever comes of insurance papers. Nico knew that for a fact.

He was slightly disappointed at the prospect of having to do work. Percy knew not of these things called 'weekends'. They were mysteries to him apparently as Nico was forced to work yesterday, a Saturday. It had been going to a wedding, nevertheless, still a job

After slapping Leo on the back, telling him to stay focused on task, Nico headed back to his own desk research what Percy had asked him.

What made him curious was that he had gone to talk to Chiron, but came back with the name, Dr. Fredrick Chase. He pulled up various tabs relating to the name. Many images of mansions in the U.K. showed up, showing influences of Roman and Greek style columns.

Nico found himself intrigued the more he looked into the designs, realizing why Percy had taken interest in them. They were very similar to Percy's own style of design. Nico paused mid-browse when Leo entered the room, whistling a cheerful tune.

"What do you want?" Nico said, gesturing at his computer screen. "Can't you see, unlike you, I actually have some work to do?"

"Harsh, man."

"I wonder how Percy ever let you back after what you did…" Nico muttered darkly.

"You're not being fair. I was drunk!"

"Is that supposed to be a good excuse?"

"No…"

Nico sighed again, "What do you want, Valdez. Make it short." By this time, Leo had come around the corner to peer over Nico's shoulder, taking a glance at the site. His eyes grew round in surprise, "Wait, that's Dr. Chase's designs, am I right?"

Nico was flabbergasted at the thought that Leo knew something he didn't. His eyes narrowed as he glared at the other man, "How'd you know?"

"I'm right, aren't I?" Leo did a little victory fist pump before leaning in to look at the screen once more. "That mansion is pretty popular around here."

"What mansion? How do you know?" Nico almost yelled in frustration, trying to restrain himself from strangling Leo.

Leo gave his superior a queer look, "You call yourself an architect? How could you not know of the Chase Duplex? It's one of the most popular houses in town. It's not all that far from here, and it's his most successful piece to date. It has the style of classical house with the perfect amount of modernism so it doesn't look ancient. He built it specifically for his wife and daughter, but visitors aren't allowed inside. "

"Wait, here in New York?!"

"Yes, here in New York," Leo replied in a puzzled tone.

Nico got up and began pushing Leo out the door forcefully while the other man protested, trying to hold on to the door frame, "What the hell are you doing?" Nico gave him a pointed glare and locked the door behind him.

He pressed the buttons furiously as he rang up Percy, "Hey, listen. Dr. Chase has a house here where his daughter lives. Yeah, here in New York. You want me to check it out for you? I have some time this afternoon. Sure, I can definitely do that for you. No problem dude."

_**Annabeth Chase— 2:00 P.M.**_

After the wedding yesterday, Annabeth had lost all interest in talking to people, having had enough with these so called 'friends'. She had even tried to avoid Rachel, but with that girl's boisterous personality, there wasn't much one could do no matter how hard they tried to stay away.

When Annabeth had opened her door this morning, she was wary, afraid that it might have been her father's people keeping tabs on the house. Either that or creditors. Both options didn't sound great. And to her dismay, it was the latter.

She tore open the letter as the men from the bank stood there impatiently. Annabeth's eyes almost bugged out the amount listed: $50,000? Where was she going to get that much? She knew she wasn't the wealthiest person in town, but she had never been broke.

But, what was that in the fine print? There had been a transaction from her account for $30,000? What?! Annabeth had never taken out that much money in her entire life before. How?

One of the men, judging her reaction, spoke up on behalf of the bank, "We were told to give you some time, but we were informed that the check was taken out not under your name, but someone else's?"

"Who?" she asked, her voice raising an octave.

"Someone by the name of Will Solace," one of the men looked to the other for confirmation. "Do you know him?"

Annabeth could feel her heart slow down. Will? Will Solace had done this to her? He had simply taken $30,000 from the company bank without informing her. What could he do with that much money? There was no plausible reason for the action.

Come to think of it, she hadn't spoken to him since Friday…and the hotel incident. Will always called her up on the weekends. Possibly, he couldn't have run off with the money, could he? That dirty bastard.

Annabeth told the creditors that she'd get back to them within the week, and hurried herself over to Rachel's house. No, she wasn't going to ask Rachel for money but was rather in dire need of her help.

"Rachel?"

"Anna? What's up?" she asked, trying to see how Annabeth was coping with yesterday's events. But Annabeth's mind wasn't on that right now. She needed to recover her 30 grand. Annabeth quickly filled her in on what Will had done. Rachel's face turned bitterer by the second as she pictured the event.

"That son of a b—"

"Rachel," Annabeth said warningly, looking pointedly at Rachel's son, Tommy.

"We have to track him down first. Look, I'll tell you what. You relax for a few days, and I'll get my husband, Apollo, to get on that."

Annabeth snorted, "What can he do?"

Rachel gave her a look of mock hurt, "Why, he's on the police force. He can get us some leads. Why else would I marry such a man?"

"Alright, say he does find Will, when am I supposed to do?"

"Demand him your money back."

"As if he will have it on him. Knowing Will, he would have spent it all. He wouldn't have embezzled them unless he really needed them."

Rachel merely rolled her eyes at Annabeth's trusting statement, "You would believe the best in everyone. Now, never fear my friend."

"Hey Rach," Annabeth began suddenly, "Want to come over to my house? I was working on a new project today. I want your opinion."

"Uh, I have to give Tommy his shower and then take him to daycare…"

"Today's Sunday," Annabeth pointed out. "If you don't want to come, you could just say it."

"Screw it. I'll come. Give me a second to get ready." Within minutes, the two friends were heading back to Annabeth's house, conveniently located a block away. As they approached the house, they were both keen on not broaching the subject of the wedding, keeping their talk to trivial things at work and home.

As they got closer, the two women noticed a man peering curiously at the house, his hand poised as though he was going to knock on the door. His unruly black hair stood up as he breathed, debating whether or not to open it.

"Hey! You!" Rachel called out as the man turned in surprise.

His eyes grew wide in shock as both girls addressed him:

"It's the pervert's friend!"

"Elevator man!"

The man turned a deep shade of firetruck red as he asked timidly, "Do you know Annabeth Chase perchance?"

Annabeth stepped forward, "I'm Annabeth Chase."

They had thought Nico's eyes couldn't get any larger than their saucer-size, but no. They had grown to be UFO-size as they nearly bugged out of his eyes. He immediately took out his phone, punching in what seemed to be random numbers. His eyes were a mix of anxiousness and fright as he spoke into the phone, "No go Perce, it's…it's her. The one from the wedding."

Without another word, he bolted away, disappearing from sight in a flash, leaving a rush of wind behind. The two girls gave one another a curious shrug, both completely lost at what had just happened.

* * *

**So, make sure to fave and follow.**

**Like I said, I don't want to be that guy who doesn't update unless I get a certain amount of reviews.**

**~TJ**


	9. Chapter 9

_**Annabeth Chase— 2:30 P.M.**_

The two stood in front of Chase Duplex for a moment, still not understanding what had just happened and why the man had been there. After the initial shock had worn off, Rachel had suggested the two go inside.

As Annabeth poured herself a cup of coffee and handed another to Rachel, she sat down on the plush sofa on the far side of the living room. She put both her feet up on the couch, huddling as she sipped the warm drink.

Rachel piped up first, "What are you going to do with the Will issue? I can help you track him down with Apollo, but who knows how long that will take. Besides, the creditors are asking for you to pay the money now. They aren't known for the patience."

Annabeth set aside her coffee on the table, throwing her hands up in the air in absolute hopelessness, "Well yeah, what do you suggest I do about it? I have no other way to make money other than the furniture. And, we all know how that went at the convention." Annabeth muttered the last part darkly at the thought of the incident.

"I was thinking…" Rachel began slowly, pausing momentarily while deciding how to phrase the question, "How about…You know, leasing your house—?"

She was cut off immediately by Annabeth, "NO!"

"But Anna, you have two rooms now that Thalia's gone. Why not rent it out to someone and make some money that way?"

Annabeth pinched the bridge of her nose as she tried to make Rachel understand the dire consequences, "Rachel, how many times have I told you? My father would kill me if I rented this house out to anyone. You know he doesn't allow strangers to the house."

"You let Thalia stay," Rachel muttered.

"She was my best friend since college, and she needed a place after her parents had died."

"So much for best friend."

"Look, that isn't the problem right now. I am not going to rent this place out to a random person."

"Didn't you say your dad was going to come in five months or so?

"Yeah, what about it?"

"If he finds out that you lost $30,000, you are screwed. Besides, what your father doesn't know won't kill him. Just rent it out till then. I'm sure you could recover at least 85% of the cost by then and lessen the scolding."

Annabeth scowled at Rachel's pleased face. Did she seriously think that? "I doubt it. So if I do get a tenant, you want me to kick her out in five months?"

"It'll be in the contract."

"No one would want to live anywhere for just five months."

"Just think about. I can come with you to the lease office and help you set it up. I do this type of stuff with my dad all the time, considering he is an industrialist and all."

"Fine," Annabeth grumbled, clearly showing her unhappiness. "I better not regret it."

The time passed idly as the two girls chitchatted about various occurrences in their life. Little Tommy occupied himself by the TV as the news zeroed down on the new Architect project to be unveiled in the following week by Olympian Architect.

Annabeth became distracted from the conversation when the screen zoomed in to last week's Art museum competition. A short sound bite focusing on Luke and his father, Hermes, aired as the two men jovially spoke of their good fortune.

Rachel grabbed the remote from Annabeth's hand, turning it off as she muttered, "Those men make me sick." Rachel stood up, grabbing a hold of Tommy's hand, "Hey, I got to run some errands before dinner tonight, but make sure to call me later. We can talk about it some more." She gave Annabeth a pointed look before leaving out the door.

Annabeth spent the remainder of the afternoon trying to decide on what to eat for dinner. She could always make the instant mac and cheese she had or the frozen lasagna she had bought from Costco the other day.

Even so, just plain lasagna would be a rather poor dinner, and if she was being honest with herself, Annabeth was starving. Ever since the wedding, she had been less inclined to eat, feeling rather squeamish and a loss of appetite. But no, she was no longer going to put off eating for the sake of that.

Grabbing a hold of her coat and wallet, Annabeth decided to make a quick run to Target to pick up a few extra groceries and dessert to go with the meal. She glanced at the clock, noticing it read 4:13 P.M. She sighed once, taking in a gulp of the cold, fresh air as it invigorated her from the tired state in which she had been.

As she walked down the five blocks between her and the store, various strange sights awaited her. Men in hoodies roamed the streets with a cigarette in their mouths. They appeared to be homeless in Annabeth's eyes. That's when a sudden thought struck her. If Will was broke too, could he possibly be one of these men too?

On her way back from Target, Annabeth was carrying two plastic bags filled with groceries, the weight almost weighing her down. She mentally cursed herself for buying so much with so little money in her account.

As she returned, the sky had gradually become darker and the men from before were still milling around the street. That's when Annabeth spotted the bright, familiar yellow jacket. That fool! If he didn't want to be caught, why wear such a fluorescent color outside.

She jogged up to the man as fast as she could, "Will!" The man in the yellow jacket had turned around when Annabeth had neared him. The smell of smoke permeated the air as he opened his mouth. No, that wasn't Will.

But just then, Annabeth saw the surprised turn of another man sporting a somber, red jacket. His face was one of pure shock and terror; he dropped the bag of gummy worms he had been holding on the ground as he registered who it was.

At the same moment, Annabeth too realized who it was. Without a second thought, she started running after him in top speed, as fast she could go with the bags still in her hand. Will had passed her house in the few seconds that had separated them.

She barely noticed the particular man standing in front of her doorstep with a camera in his hand.

"Will, stop right now! Look, let's just talk. Slow down!"

She heard the sound of running footsteps next to her, and she turned her head slightly, finding herself looking into a pair of emerald green eyes.

The man spoke up with an amused tone on his face, "It seems as though you really do have complicated relations with the opposite gender."

_**Percy Jackson— 3:05 P.M.**_

After Nico had called him to relay the news, Percy was even more curious. First, it began with Luke. Had Luke knowingly approached this girl, Annabeth Chase? Had someone tipped off Hermes Inc. about the new construction possibility for the resort?

A million things were running through Percy's head as he clicked on every article ever published about the house. Although it was called a duplex, the two 'entities' of the house were not all that separate. Many of the rooms were shared. In fact, only the bedrooms, closet, and extra storage rooms were different.

There were rumors about a hidden basement, but not of the articles gave a clear image of what the house looked like on the interior. There were various angles on the outside perspective, but not a single image showed up when he typed in 'Chase Duplex interior'.

But from what Nico and Leo had said, no outsider was allowed into the house. And he, sadly enough, was an outsider. Besides, he doubted that the blond haired girl had any good words to put in for him from their constant bickering.

He could hear the heated argument that Leo and Nico were having, each boasting about the amount of alcohol they could go. Percy snorted at the thought of Leo drinking alcohol, but immediately shivered at the consequences.

Percy walked outside his office, taking a quick glance at his office. Leo was immediately by his side, "Boss, you weren't serious about firing me. Were you? Especially after I helped Nico with Chase Duplex."

Nico rolled his eyes, "Please. Had you given me another minute or so, I would have found that out myself."

"Nico, get rid of Leo's desk," Percy said with some amusement in his eyes.

"What, no!"

Nico was quick to follow directions as he went to Leo's cubicle. Leo quickly trailed behind, protesting the entire way, "You…you can't do that. It isn't fair. I helped you!"

The other man let out a quick bark like laugh, "Fine, do what you want. Keep working, but you won't get paid."

"Hey! That goes against federal law. I should get at least minimum wage. Nico, you can't do that!"

Percy hid his smirk as he waved good bye to Nico. Nico had warned him not to go, but where Percy was concerned, this was too good of a lead to give up on. He got into his Challenger, punching in the address into Apple maps. He knew that he would get lost inevitably with the app, but had no other choice.

Besides, he the house wasn't all that far from the office when he had checked MapQuest for a sense of directions. He made a quick stop at his own house to pick up the camera. And to his dismay, he found Calypso sitting on the couch, still in the same position as she was when he had left earlier that morning.

She flung herself at him as he walked in through the door, refusing to let go when he tried to shake her off. That suborn girl. She trailed after him into his room where he went to pick up his camera, the Canon Rebel T3i.

"Perce," she whined as she secured herself around his waist, her long legs wrapping around them. "Why don't you spend the rest of the day with me?" She had one arm around his neck and the other dotingly brushing the raven black locks from his face.

Percy looked her straight in the eye and sighed, "Cali, I don't have time for this. I have work to do and just came to pick up the camera. Tell mom I'll probably be late tonight."

"But Percy," she pouted, making that endearing puppy dog face. Everyone found it endearing…except for Percy. He thought it was a nuisance. "You promised you'd spend more time with me."

"Maybe next weekend," he said.

"Promise?" she asked as she pecked him once on the cheek.

"We'll see."

By the time Percy had gotten back into the car and driven to Chase Duplex, it was already 4:35. Calypso had detained him for far longer than he had expected. What was he supposed to say? He hadn't really thought of it.

Was he to feign surprise when she opened the door, pretending like he had no idea? He also couldn't just ask to go inside and take a look around. Not especially when they had explicitly said no visitors. He parked his car on the curb one street away from the house in so that he wouldn't raise any suspicions.

He rang the doorbell once as he got to the top of the doorstep. No answer. He waited another minute before he rang it again. No answer once more. Percy resorted to knocking when he heard a girl screaming from behind him.

"Will, stop right now! Look, let's just talk. Slow down!"

Percy did a double take as he saw the blond hair fly by. With a second of hesitation, he made up his mind. He began running after her, the camera pouch secure in his hand. Within a second, he had caught up with her.

She turned to face him with a look of astonishment on her face.

"It seems as though you really do have complicated relations with the opposite gender," he began, almost conversationally.

Annabeth Chase didn't slow down as she muttered with a sideways glare, "What are you doing here?"

Just as Percy was about to respond, Annabeth slowed down for a second. Her foot was positioned was in awkward angle which Percy would hurt. The bags she had been carrying fell down as she winced in pain. The splatter of tomatoes and eggs mixing together jolted him.

The foot had rolled back, and she let out a little screech as she attempted to place her foot on the ground.

Percy didn't know what to say, so he stuck with keeping it simple, "Are you ok?"

Her glare was just as scary even when in pain, "Does it look like I'm fine?" But she gritted her teeth. Not bothering to pix up the groceries, she began hobbling in the direction of the man she was chasing. Percy kept pace with her.

"I have to catch Will!" she muttered.

"Wait, slow down. You want to catch that man with that foot? That's not going to work. Stay here. I'll get him," with that final word, Percy was off, following where he had last seen the man turn. The other guy must have gotten a good lead in the minute or two Annabeth had slowed down from her sprained ankle.

He rushed down the unfamiliar streets, asking himself why he was chasing an unknown man through the streets of New York for a girl who hated the sight of him. He was officially going crazy as Nico would have put it.

As he turned on to a straight alley, he found the man running a few yards in front of him. He was ease to pick out with his red jacket and blond hair. That's when they hit a dead end. The man's face had turned a shocking pale white when he turned to face Percy, deciding the best way to bolt passed him. Percy slowed down, knowing that he had cornered the other man, approaching him slowly.

Unbeknownst to both of them, Annabeth had managed to catch up even with her foot. She followed directly behind Percy, "Hey Will!"

She came closer as Percy made space for her in the narrow alley, "Will, look at me. What'd you do with it? Where's the 30 grand?"

The man, which Percy assumed was Will, tried to make a run for it, shoving Annabeth to the side. Percy managed to steady her before grabbing a hold of Will's jacket from the tips of his fingers.

He spun the man around so that Annabeth could face him. Will has his face down when Annabeth removed the hoodie covering his face. Without hesitation, she slapped him hard, causing even Percy to wince at the sound.

* * *

**Personally, I like the next chapter a lot. But anyway, the next few chapters will show more of their character development and the beginning stages of their relationship.**

**I won't be updating daily because I'll be out of town for the next week or so. And the week after this one, I'm going on a month and half trip out of the country. I doubt said other country has great Wi-Fi nor will I have too much time to update.**

**I'll do my best to update when I do have Internet connection. This is just a heads-up for next week. I'll probably update 3 or 4 chapters before then. **

**Anyway, make sure to follow, fave, and review in the box below.**

**~TJ**


	10. Chapter 10

_**Annabeth Chase—5:15 P.M.**_

Annabeth had to admit that it felt satisfying to slap Will and get out all that stocked up anger. She saw the grimace on Percy's face as he heard the slap, having pinned Will to his chest so he couldn't escape.

Ten minutes later, Annabeth found herself sitting across from Will at Starbucks as he hungrily scarfed down a blueberry muffin and a cup of iced tea latte. She felt some pity but immediately shook it off when she remembered what the man had done.

Will wouldn't even look her in the face as the three went to Starbucks. Annabeth had had to lean against Percy as her ankle was twisted. She insisted on just hobbling down all the way to the café, but Percy refused point blank, adamant about her leaning on him for support.

She sat, watching Will as Percy sat down at another table away from them. Annabeth tried to look Will in the eye, that one instant he actual caught her eye. "You're hungry, aren't you?"

He gave a quick jerk of the head before taking a large slurp from his latte. Annabeth knew he wouldn't be talking much and decided to continue the one-sided conversation.

"Look, I don't know why you did it, but Will, you should have told me you were broke," she said softly.

"Why?" he demanded, almost aggressively, "Would you have given me the money then?"

"I could have done my best to help. You know, I'm partially broke too. And if my father finds out, I'm done for."

"I really needed it," he said, his tone of voice dipping down at the end.

Annabeth threw her hands up in the air in exasperation, "That doesn't mean you can just take it. Look, we'll figure it out later. Just give me the money back, and we'll just say it never happened."

"I don't have it," he mumbled.

"What was that?"

"I don't have it," he said only slightly louder.

"Unbelievable. How do you spend 30 grand in two days?!" she managed to keep her voice in check, conscious of her surroundings, but her temper was reaching its peak quickly.

"I was in debt. A whole ton of debt. They would have carted me away. You know how it is. I can't go there!" Will's voice rose with each word at the prospect of being taken to jail due to debts.

Annabeth just sighed, banging her head on the table once. She pushed up her blond hair messily with one hand as she looked back up, "So you take money from me? Do you know how much I already have going on in my life? Will, you tell me. What am I supposed to do now?"

She meant the question to be rhetorical, but Will put on a thoughtful look, "Well…"

Annabeth interrupted him, "Don't answer that. Now that Thalia's gone, Rachel suggested I put up the extra room in the duplex for sale."

Will's face lit up at the idea but instantly became grim when Annabeth continued, "I can't do that! You know how my father is about strangers in the house." Oh, Will knew, how Will knew about Dr. Fredrick Chase. He shuddered at the thought of the unpleasant experience.

"But he wouldn't know."

Annabeth shot him a glare, "That's what Rachel said. I told her it was worth a try, but I'd never recover the cost. Besides, that doesn't mean you're off the chain yet."

"Don't report me," he entreated. "I had no choice. I really didn't."

"Idiot," Annabeth mumbled as she sighed, putting her face into the palm of her hands.

Will had a pathetic, apologetic look on his face as he mumbled incoherently. He shoveled the remainder of his muffin into his mouth. Annabeth, seeing this, pushed her own pastry towards the man.

"Thanks," he replied before proceeding to eat it too. Annabeth watched him carefully, not saying anything. She could see that being broke had taken its toll on him. He had dark shadows under his baggy, sleepless eyes. His blond hair was unkempt and greasy as it laid flat on his head. Will had a scruffy beard going for him, the blond stubble almost invisible under his pale, tired face.

His clothes too were ruffled with significant signs of poor condition. There were stains everywhere with hints of dust. Annabeth looked up with some concern, "Where have you been staying?"

"I, uh— It's… Never mind. Just at a friend's."

Annabeth looked at him skeptically, not believing a single word he had just said, but she went along with it, knowing it was better not to push him any further. Will pushed his chair out, standing up for a moment, "I need to use the restroom."

She rolled her eyes, "You're running away aren't you?"

Will remained mute, turning around to leave. Annabeth sighed in frustration, resting her head on the table. She heard footsteps approach her moments later. Will hadn't come back, had he? She looked up to find green eyes boring back down into hers with a grimace on his face, "You do realize he isn't coming back, don't you?"

"Don't worry, he will eventually…"

Percy snorted, "So naïve."

Annabeth got up, ready to make a retort, but her foot fell under the pressure, causing her to collapse back into the chair. Percy threw a worried glance at her foot, noticing the swelling that had begun to occur, "You should get that checked out at the doctor's."

"No, I'm good," she lied, wincing as she rolled her foot.

"Nope, we're going," he picked her up, supporting her by the arm as he let her slip it around his neck to prop her up. She grumbled in irritation as he helped her walk to the car that he had parked two streets down. Giving her one last smirk, he shut the door roughly behind her.

_**Percy Jackson— 6: 30 P.M.**_

Percy waited outside patiently in the reception area for Annabeth to come back out from the doctor's office. Leaning back on the chair, he took off his coat jacket, realizing that the heat was getting to him and causing him to sweat.

Annabeth hadn't said much on the way back, keeping a mute face and refusing to glance at him. He wasn't all that surprised considering she was unwillingly dragged to the doctor's office for examination by a near-stranger…And she had lost a hold of that Will guy.

Percy noticed that she didn't seem to cut up about it when Will had left, like she reached wit's end. But it didn't matter to Percy; in fact, it was nice that she stayed quiet, allowing him to think.

He had sat a few tables behind Annabeth and Will at Starbucks, occasionally listening to their conversation as he stirred the scalding hot chai tea he had ordered. As he blew on it once to cool it down, he overheard snippets.

"_Don't answer that. Now that Thalia's gone, Rachel suggested I put up the extra room in the duplex for sale. I can't do that! You know how my father is about strangers in the house."_

"_That's what Rachel said. I told her it was worth a try, but I'd never recover the cost. Besides, that doesn't mean you're off the chain yet."_

So, the girl was leasing the house now, was she? Whoever this Rachel girl was, thank God to her. The gears started turning in Percy's mind as he began formulating his plan. He could easily approach the girl, demanding to rent the room from her. She couldn't refuse considering she was in dire need of money.

That's it. He called Nico once, making sure he was on board with the situation before doing anything.

"Yallo?" said the voice on the other end.

"Look man, I have an idea," Percy quickly filled the younger man in on the details. Percy could almost see the other boy's skepticism through the phone.

"Perce, are you out of your mind?"

"What's wrong with it?"

"It's THAT girl!"

"So?"

"She's a psychopath."

"Cut her some slack."

"Are you sure she's renting it out? It specifically said that the duplex isn't open to strangers."

"I'm not much of a stranger now, am I?"

"Percy…."

"Nico, chill man. You're the one who got me into this."

"Now I'm telling you to stop before you regret it."

"Since when do you care? Besides, this was just a courtesy call to let you know of the plan. I am the boss, Nico. It's my company. I will do what I want."

"If we go bankrupt," Nico whispered.

"We're already half bankrupt," Percy muttered back. "This could be our big break against Hermes Inc. You know how I feel about this after what his father did to mine."

"I know, I know. Fine, I'll back you up."

"Good, just don't tell Leo…Who knows what he does with that big mouth of his. If Cali finds out, I'm doomed."

"Just put those sexy looks of yours to use on the lady," Nico said in a suggestive manner. "She's probably got the hots for you if she lets you in."

Percy quickly shoved the phone back in his pocket as he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Annabeth came to a stop with her hands crossed against her chest with a raised eyebrow, "Well?"

"Ready to go?"

"I guess."

Percy chuckled, earning him a surprised glare, "You know, at times like this, this is where you say thank you." He helped open the door for her to get into the Challenger.

Annabeth paused momentarily before speaking up, "What do you want?"

"What?!"

She sighed and pinched her nose bridge, closing her eyes in the same swift motion, "Don't play with me. You obviously need or want something. Why else were you at my house?"

"I was just wandering by the neighborhood."

"And it just happened to be where I live. You know, we aren't exactly the best of friends. From what I remember, we've found something to argue about every time we've seen each other."

"Well…"

"Did you come to see my house? Did my father send you?"

Percy scoffed, trying to hide the truth, "Why the hell would I want to see your house? Like it's special or something." Annabeth rolled her eyes, deciding it was best kept secret the popularity of her house in NYC. She shrugged, not saying anything.

"Is it a crime to walk around New York?" he continued, "Why are you so ungrateful anyway. I captured that Will guy for you, and I took you to the doctor.

"About that," she began, "Give me your account number. I'll transfer the money that I owe you from the hospital check-up."

Percy waved his hand in irritation, "Forget it. It wasn't that much anyway."

Annabeth opened her mouth to protest, "I don't care. Give your number, so I can wire the money. I don't want to be taken for a girl who is dependent on beneficiaries."

"I told you to forget it!" Percy's voice rose. "I don't care about the damn money."

Annabeth huffed, seating back against her seat. Percy parked the car in front of her house, getting down at the same time as her. She shot him a puzzled look, "Thanks, but I can walk in by myself."

"Mind if I take a look around?" he asked innocently.

The reaction was immediate, "What?! No!"

"Why not?" he continued with the same tone, a little taken back by her harsh response.

Annabeth looked like she was shocked by his straightforwardness, not completely sure how to answer his question, "Why would I let you in? Like I said, thank you for today." With that, she began climbing up the steps when Percy called out, "How else are you going to get a tenant if you don't show them the house?"

Her head turned back at the speed of light, "What did you just say?"

"You're renting out the duplex, right?" he beamed, pleasantly surprised by the effect he had on her.

"Where'd you hear that?" she whispered slowly.

"Ah…What was his name again? Will. Right, I overheard you tell Will that you were leasing it out. And it just so happens that I'm looking for a place closer to work to stay."

"Why would I rent it to you of all people? Plus, you're a guy."

"I've noticed. Thank you very much," he replied dryly. "Why does it matter?"

She shook her head at his thick-headed question, "Are you stupid? You can't just live with a girl."

Percy simply rolled his eyes, "Don't worry. You don't attract me in the least bit. I wouldn't do anything to you. You're not my type."

Annabeth opened her mouth to retort, but realized what he was saying. _You're not my type_. She mentally slapped herself. But still, to outsiders, it would be scandalous.

"I can't," she finally said.

At that moment, the doors opened from inside the duplex when a tall red-head walked out. Percy groaned internally upon recognition. It was the woman from the elevator.

"Annabeth, I was waiting for you…" she paused when she noticed Percy, a flicker of acknowledgement in her eyes when she recalled who he was. "Oh, you're from the wedding. Percy, was it?"

"Yes, I am."

"Annabeth, what were you doing with him?" she shot her a puzzled look.

"Never you mind. He helped me catch Will. But the guy eventually escaped. I let him go, knowing that guilt would eventual make him return."

Rachel snorted, "You are so naïve."

Annabeth scowled at the two, "That's what he said too."

"Oh, is that so?" Rachel winked once at Percy, "Looks like great minds think alike. So Percy, what brings you here?"

"I asked him that too," Annabeth grumbled. Rachel threw her a threatening glare. Percy merely laughed, "I was just asking blondie here to rent out the room. I heard tell that Will guy about her money issue, and I'm willing to help out. And it works well for me since it would take less time to get to work in the traffic."

"So, what's wrong?"

"She refuses to even let me in."

Rachel turned to Annabeth with a frown, "You better not be backing out of this. I came to tell you that the house is already on the market. And let the guy have a chance to look around."

"Rach, no…" Annabeth didn't get to finish as Rachel smiled sweetly at Percy before dragging Annabeth in to the house by the ear, "It'll be a second Percy."

_**Annabeth Chase—7:00 P.M.**_

Rachel sat across from Annabeth with her legs crossed and a disapproving visage, "Why not give the guy a chance to see the room?"

"I don't want to rent it out to him!"

"You always were stubborn," Rachel mused. "What are you worried about? You need the money, and he's willing to pay."

"But, he's a guy…"

"Thank you Captain Obvious. What's your point?"

"Are you dumb too?"

"I'm trying to help here," Rachel said smoothly.

"I can't allow a guy in here. Dad will actually murder me."

"Annabeth, he isn't like other guys."

"Meaning?"

"Well, first of all, he likes other men…"

"Tell me about it," Annabeth muttered darkly. "That man has a harem of boyfriends."

"Exactly, he wouldn't even dare look at you when he has all of them."

Annabeth was still going on about the harem, "If he brings any of them home, I swear…" Rachel chucked the pillow at her, "Don't be a jerk. It'll be his house too when he pays rent."

"Give me another reason."

"I've heard that gay guys are a girl's best friend. Imagine all the things you can do with him. He would be the perfect boyfriend material if he wasn't gay and all. God, he's so handsome with his green eyes and ruffled hair. Anyway, back to the point. You can take him shopping with you, get manis and pedis, and best of all, you can cook together."

Annabeth pictured Percy in a frilly maid outfit with an apron and bowtie with his long black hair up in a short high pony. She shivered at the mental picture, gagging internally.

Rachel was on a roll, "He can give you tips on clothes. I heard they have the best style. And honey, let me tell you, you need it. He can do your make-up. Oh, and don't forget the face-packs! Look, he's willing to pay the price."

"I get it. I get it."

Rachel grabbed Annabeth by the hand and dragged her back out were Percy remained standing. She crossed her arms to give off the whole unwillingness attitude. The red-haired girl, on the other hand, smiled at Percy warmly.

"I think we have a deal," Annabeth began. Percy's mouth twitched slightly as though fighting a smile. Before she could finish, Rachel ran up to Percy, tackling him in a hug. Percy looked shocked as he patted her back awkwardly in response.

"Welcome to the fam bam!" Rachel grinned from ear to ear.

* * *

**So, I'll probably update this next Tuesday since I'll be out in the wilderness for the next few days. Hopefully, for those who read **_**The Green Eyed Marine,**_** I will update on Monday.**

**As of next Wednesday, I'll be going out of the country for over a month, so Wi-Fi, as I said before, will be pretty sketchy. I'll update when I can and if I have time.**

**Don't forget to fave, follow, and review.**

**If this gets 150 reviews, 150th reviewer gets a special shout out.**

**~TJ**


	11. Chapter 11

**As promised, special shout-out to Velocity Drew Warren for being the 150****th**** reviewer.**

**Once again, I want to say thank you to all those who have reviewed, faved, or followed this story so far. I'm really grateful that you find my writing decent to slave through and read. **

**Yes, characters will be OoC. This is an AU after all. **

**Just as clarification, Percy doesn't know that they think he's gay. He's just self-conscious every time they see him with Nico or Leo.**

**I think this is the longest chapter yet.**

**Disclaimer: Percy Jackson is Rick's. The plot belongs to the Koreans.**

* * *

_**Thalia Grace— Next Day, 10 A.M.**_

After her wedding had been spoiled, Thalia Grace had abandoned her fiancé in the lobby of the chapel. She had taken the car meant to take them to airport and went straight to her father's house. But, after a few days of thought and consideration, she wondered what she had done wrong to hide out there.

Luke and her, they had gotten their future house together after all, hadn't they. She returned to the house that Hermes had presented the two as a pre-nuptial gift. Digging into her pocket for the keys, she entered the house. To her satisfaction, she noticed the house hadn't been touched yet.

Either Luke hadn't been by or he was being very careful. She put her luggage in the master bedroom where she found the large California king sized bed dominating the floor. Thalia looked at it in a scoffing manner. Annabeth had designed the bed for her wedding present and sent it in in advance.

She threw herself onto the bed without a second thought, just lying there and staring at the ceiling. The wedding incident came back to her once more as she recalled Annabeth's shocked face as she stood in front of them.

The girl had nerve to come. And what had Luke said? That he had sorted it all out, that the Stolls were on duty to prevent her from entering. That was all just a lie. The jerk didn't have the guts to straight up tell Annabeth the truth like she had instructed to do.

Knowing there was no use in raking up the past, Thalia decided on taking a relaxing bubble bath. She turned on the faucet of the large bathtub as she slipped off her dress. Sticking a toe in the water, she noted that the temperature was just perfect for taking a dip in.

She let her black hair soak as she herself laid back against the tub in relaxation with her arms on either edge. It was soothing to say the least to let all her worries flow out alongside the bubble water.

Thalia spent a good half hour simply sitting in the tub before deciding to get up. She didn't want to look wrinkly after all. She had just wrapped a towel around her body and her hair when she heard the click of the front door.

Thalia immediately slipped on the pair of black lace pajamas and pants she had brought with her while still leaving her hair up in the towel. To her great surprise, she found someone else in the bedroom, sitting on the bed while staring at her suitcase. Luke.

"Thalia?" he said in surprise, "You…how…What are you doing here?"

Thalia sneered at his pronounced stammer, "I could ask you the same thing."

"This is my house," he justified.

"It's mine too."

"My father bought it."

"For OUR wedding."

"Well, that never happened, did it?" he shot back.

She pinched the bridge of the nose, "Look Luke, I'm not in the mood to argue, so get out while you still can."

"This is still my house as in my dad paid for it," Luke stressed.

In her frustration, Thalia threw the pillow from the bed on Luke's head, sufficiently surprising him. "Get out," she ordered once more.

"If anyone doesn't belong here, it's you," he muttered in irritation.

"Well, if you want to get picky," Thalia began. "Get off the bed. That's the one Annabeth gave me."

"Oh, I see how it is. Getting petty are we?" Luke let out a chortle. "It was a wedding present. Yeah, I'm sure she would have done had she known what a back-stabbing bitch her friend was. You have no right to accept anything from that girl."

"Are you taking her side now?" Thalia huffed. "Do you pity her, Luke? That's all you ever did, you jerk. You never cared about her, so didn't give me this crap about her now. You did her just as much wrong."

Luke sighed as he rubbed his head, "I already have a headache. Don't make it worse. I've gotten enough from my father about the wedding being ruined, and honestly, I don't need this right now. How about we just start over?" Truth was that Hermes need Thalia's help to approach Chiron Brunner. Luke wasn't going to say that out rightly of course.

"You want to start over?" she demanded with incredulity. "As in getting married again."

"Yeah, why not?"

"Are you actually stupid? In case you didn't catch on. I hate you right now."

"Fine, how about we pretend we're married and you know, start over in the process."

"Why would I ever pretend to be married to you?"

Luke winced, "Because I told my moms, and they are all under the impression I'm married."

"Your moms? You mean as in all the women your father has had an affair with in the last decade?"

"They're all like real mothers to me."

"I wonder if you know which one is your actual mom," Thalia muttered.

"Just do me this one favor. It would mean so much to them. I said I'd invite them over once we're all settled in," he said sheepishly.

"You did what?" she yelled. "That's it Luke. I've had enough with your selfishness. I'm out of here. You win. Happy?!"

"Where are you going?"

"Somewhere. Anywhere away from you!"

_**Percy Jackson— 1:00 P.M.**_

After getting Annabeth's grim approval, Percy decided he would move in right away, not wasting any time at all in getting started for the project.

He had promised Rachel he'd drop by after lunch to go over the terms for renting and bring along a few suitcases filled with necessary clothes before he brought over the rest of his wardrobe. Before going though, he made a quick stop at the bank, withdrawing $5,000 for the initial deposit.

Percy had asked Nico to come along and to help carry some of the suitcases into his new house. Nico had willingly complied in eagerness to see what was so special about the house.

Percy rang the doorbell as he left Nico to struggle with lifting the bags up the front steps. He gave the former a scowl when he noticed that Percy was bare-handed. The doors swung open to reveal the red-haired bubbly woman with her surlier friend and owner of the house.

"Percy, come in," she gushed. Rachel threw a surprised look when she saw Nico enter alongside Percy. "Oh, you can place the bags in the room," she said to him, directing him to where Percy was to reside.

Annabeth threw them both a dirty look as she settled herself down on the couch. Percy sat on the couch opposite her. Rachel proceeded to bringing lemonade from the kitchen and bumped into Nico as they returned.

Nico apologized profusely, helping her clean up the mess. Annabeth sat patiently, waiting for her friend to sit down before they started. She took out the papers and documents she had with her, placing it in front so Percy could see the terms and conditions.

Nico shared the couch with Percy as Rachel shared with Annabeth. Percy quickly skimmed the terms laid out for him, grinning every once in a while.

"What's so funny?" Annabeth demanded as he put the papers back on the table.

"Oh, it's nothing. Some of your conditions…" he trailed off. "Anyway, before we sign anything, I have a few terms of my own."

"Excuse me? This is my house."

"And…I'll be the one paying the rent here. I mean, if you don't want to rent out your house."

Rachel nudged Annabeth with her elbow, enough to cause her to wince. "Alright, alright. What do you want?"

"First of all," he began, "The house is a mess. That won't do." He gestured to the random tools lying on the floor throughout the house."

Annabeth blew the blond hair from her face, "My profession doesn't generally call for cleanliness. I do clean, but I'm normally pressed for time. Besides, those are the tools I need."

Percy clicked his tongue, "And the sawdust levels in the house are actually physically painful to breathe in."

"You…!"

"Take it or leave it," he said.

"Why do I feel like I'm the tenant here?" Annabeth grumbled but consented.

"Second, you will not invade my privacy and will stay out of my room and all my stuff for that matter."

"That goes for you too. Step out of bounds, and let's just say your family line will be sacrificed," she retorted. Rachel and Nico looked on in silent fascination, watching which one of the two was going to lose their temper first. At this point, Nico had bets on Annabeth.

"Please, like I would go anywhere near that mess of your bedroom."

"As it mentions in the document, you may only access the living room, the bathroom, the kitchen, and your bedroom."

"Third, you will not touch anything I leave behind in the fridge," he continued as though he hadn't heard her.

"Stingy, aren't you? Anything else, your highness?" she muttered sarcastically.

"I'll let you know when I think of them," he replied cheerfully.

"Well, if that's it then, sign here," she indicated to the X with the line underneath. The two signed the documents carefully scrutinizing every detail to trip the other up.

"Shake your hands on it," Rachel enthused as Annabeth glared.

"Yeah! Shake hands!" Nico joined in. Percy too scowled as he shook the girl's hand gingerly. Nico too shook Rachel's hand which the lady returned with great vigor, "Looks like we'll be the best of friends."

"So Percy…" Rachel began, eyeing the two men opposite to her closely, "How long have you and…" She looked pointedly at Nico.

"Nico," he said in a hurry.

"Right, how long have you and Nico known each other for?"

Percy glanced at her curiously, wondering where the question was coming from, "Umm, three years or so."

"How'd you two meet?" she went on.

Nico answered this time, a bit more oblivious than Percy, "When he hired me I guess."

"Oh, so he's your boss?" Rachel asked with a queer tone in her voice. She raised an eyebrow at Annabeth. Annabeth quickly slapped Rachel's arm, warning her to stop. But Rachel was not to be stopped, "That's it, nothing else?"

"Is there anything else?" the two men asked each other in confusion.

"Rachel, leave!" Annabeth scolded her best friend as Percy did the same to Nico, "Get out man."

"Be good Perce," Nico waggled his eyes suggestively after Rachel had gone out.

"Shut up," Percy took Nico to the door, away from Annabeth's prying eyes, "Don't visit too often, ok?"

"But Percy," Nico whined. "Alright, got it. Anyway, put that sexy manliness to good use and get on her good side. And give me a hug man. I'll miss you so much."

Nico hugged Percy tightly; the latter pushed him off roughly. He winked once more before Percy shoved him out the door promptly.

Annabeth watched the scene with some skepticism, "One more thing. I don't like unwelcome visitors in the house, so I suggest you meet with your partners elsewhere. My father doesn't like strangers in here."

_Partners? As in business partners? _Percy thought to himself. Well, that was random, but then again, there was no denying that the girl was odd. He shook his head deciding it was best not to understand the girl.

"I'll be in my room then. I'd prefer it if you didn't disturb me. I have something I need to work on." Said something was the first sketches of the house of course. She crossed her arms over her chest, tapping her foot, "Like I would do that. Anyway, dinner's at 7 P.M."

"No thanks," he replied. "I'll manage my own food. I'd prefer not to trouble you." He sneered the last bit. From the state of her house, he doubted her cooking skills were any better.

"Suit yourself, but don't come crawling when you smell the food."

"Oh, I won't. Trust me," he promised.

"Anyway, I'm going out to buy groceries considering I wasted them yesterday while chasing Will. I'll be back in an hour."

Percy nodded, waiting for her to exit the house before looking around. To be honest, he was scared. Annabeth had threatened to cause the extinction of his family line if he stepped a foot out of place.

He spent the next thirty minutes examining every nook and corner of the duplex, pleasantly surprised by what he had seen. This was perfect. Just as Chiron had expected it to be. He stood in the middle of one of the rooms, noting the window ceiling which allowed one to see the night sky from within the house.

His curiosity led him to one of the 'forbidden' rooms, a.k.a, one of the rooms Annabeth had not given him permission to enter. The dimly lit room was stacked with books in entirety about architecture which he presumed belonged to Dr. Chase. There were a few loose leaf sheets of sketches in a file to the side. Annabeth's most likely.

What caught his eye was a sheet of white parchment paper sticking out like a short thumb in the otherwise dark room. He took it out, squinting to make out the words.

As he began to examine it, Percy noticed that the paper was the blueprints to the specific room he was standing in. That's exactly what he had needed. If each blueprint was in its respective room…

The phone rang at the moment as Percy glanced at caller id: Sally Jackson.

"Hello?" he whispered.

"Percy, why aren't you home yet?"

"Mom, I can't talk right now. I'll call you later."

"It's just that Calypso's been waiting all day and wouldn't leave my side until I called you."

"Mom, I gotta go. I'll tell you later"

The door slid open revealing an eerie face, backlit from the light outside the room. Percy recoiled at the sight of the glowering face.

"Or you could tell ME now," Annabeth whispered.

"What?"

"What are you doing in this room?"

"I—I was just…lost?"

"You do remember the agreement, right?" Annabeth asked sweetly. She held up the object in her hand. It was a chainsaw. Percy let out an unmanly shriek as Annabeth pushed the button once. Within seconds, he was out of the room and in the safety of his own.

He decided that he wouldn't ever leave the room unless it was absolutely necessary. God, that girl could have given him a heart attack.

_**Annabeth Chase— 7:30 P.M.**_

Annabeth had just finished her dinner. She was surprised to find that Percy was lost already, but the way he shrieked made her wonder whether he was actually a girl. She hadn't meant to scare him that much, just enough to remember the warning.

As she was about to go back to her workshop, the door swung open to reveal a person bringing in their suitcase. Annabeth dropped the glass of water in her hand at the sight. It was Thalia.

"I'm going to bed," Thalia said as though it was a routine, her bright blue eyes now a tarnished color.

"Thalia," Annabeth's voice quavered, "How…How…What makes you think you can just walk back in here?"

"I live here, don't I?" Thalia's eyes flashed in amusement. "Do I need permission to enter?"

"Are you serious right now?"

"I ended things with Luke. Are you happy now? That's what you wanted."

Annabeth's temper, irritation, and confusion were reaching their peaks right now, "So, you think you can just come back when you feel like."

"Hey, we've been friends for a decade. We shouldn't let a useless guy get in between us."

"I don't think you understand, Thalia. What you did, that's not what friends for a decade do. Do you know what you did? Are you that forgetful?"

"And you?" Thalia retorted. "You ruined my wedding. Now I have nowhere to go."

"You make it seem like I'm the culprit here," Annabeth bit back.

"Aren't you?" Thalia said rhetorically. "Just remember, Annabeth, Luke never loved you. He simply pities you, even now so it seems."

Just as Annabeth was about to respond, the door swung open, revealing the green eyed man in his green pajamas. Annabeth bit back the urge to look at the fit, muscled body threatening to strain through the shirt.

Thalia looked outraged, "You rented out the room…to a man? You whore!"

Annabeth didn't listen, directing her anger to Percy, "Why'd you come out?"

"You were being too noisy for me too focus. If it isn't too much to ask, take it down a notch. This is my house too now." He closed the door loudly behind him as he went back.

"So?" Thalia raised an eyebrow, "What's that about? Are you careless, letting a guy in? I knew you were desperate, but not this desperate."

"Why? Do you want him too? Steal him to be your next boyfriend?" Annabeth's voice rose with each question. "Then good luck trying. Have fun trying to make him your boyfriend."

"Are you challenging me right now?" Thalia jeered. "You know that guys always end up with me. I don't need to go after him."

"Not this one," Annabeth scoffed, her arms crossed over her chests.

"Yeah, why not? I can get any guy."

"You're not his type."

"Watch me," Thalia went in direction of Percy's door when Annabeth spoke up, "Do what you want."

Thalia stopped in her tracks as Annabeth continued, "That man…is gay."

_**Percy Jackson—8:00 P.M.**_

After the little scare he had had from Annabeth, Percy decided it was best to stay away from her. He spent the next three hours sketching what he had managed to see in the house. It had been going well till he heard the front door open.

His pencil dropped in shock as he recognized the voice to be Luke's ex-fiancée. The girl actually had the nerve to return to a house where she was hated? That took some guts.

But that's when shit went down as the two girls started bickering over the past. He had to admit though that the Thalia girl sounded like the ultimate bitch as she tried to treat Annabeth like a pushover.

He soon lost all his concentration as his hands couldn't bring themselves to sketch what he had in mind. Percy knew the best solution was to go out and reprimand the two 'teenage-like' girls.

The two looked like they were locked in a fierce battle of words when he saw them. There was shock on Thalia's face at the sight of him exiting her old room.

Thalia looked outraged, "You rented out the room…to a man? You whore!"

Annabeth didn't listen, directing her anger to Percy, "Why'd you come out?"

"You were being too noisy for me too focus. If it isn't too much to ask, take it down a notch. This is my house too now."

Percy laughed at her reaction as he went back into the room, knowing that she had succumbed to his valid reason. He was a renter, and he ought to have the same consideration of peace and quiet she had.

The girls spoke in a hushed whisper for a few moments before he realized the topic had now turned to him.

"_Are you challenging me right now?" Thalia demanded. "You know that guys always end up with me. I don't need to go after him."_

"_Not this one," Annabeth retorted._

"_Yeah, why not? I can get any guy."_

"_You're not his type."_

"_Watch me."_

Percy heard footsteps approach his door as he sighed at the nuisance. Girls these days, always arguing over guys. Maybe Nico had a valid point. Maybe Annabeth had let him in because of his charms.

_Annabeth spoke up, "Do what you want."_

Now Percy was confused. Was she asking Thalia to seduce him? There was no way in hell he'd let that girl approach him with a ten foot long pole.

_Thalia stopped in her tracks as Annabeth continued, "That man…is gay."_

The compass in Percy's hand fell, the clatter resonating throughout the room. There was pin drop silence in the living room as the girls stopped talking. He got up immediately, rushing to the door. Percy opened it was a hard tug.

The two girls' faces peered back at him, each with a different expression. Annabeth's was tired, as though she had had enough with arguing. Thalia's would have been comical had the reaction not been caused by his topic.

Her mouth was agape, her blue eyes now sharp and reflecting the shock. He could have sworn her short black hair was standing up.

"What did you say?" he whispered deathly quiet to Annabeth.

"I told her that you were gay."

* * *

**Thank you to those who reviewed the last chapter, faved, and followed.**

**I updated a chapter of **_**The Green Eyed Marine**_** earlier today. So, take a look at that.**

**I also wrote a quick angsty Percabeth one-shot/drabble yesterday, so make sure to check it out and fave/review.**

**Lastly, I'm dubious as to how good my Internet connection will be when I'm traveling. If I don't update, I will before September for sure. This might be the last update in a while.**

**If that's the case, make sure to read, fave, follow. Review, maybe that'll give me incentive to update while on holiday.**

**~TJ**


	12. Chapter 12

**Thank you to all those who reviewed/faved/followed this story thus far.**

**I don't have Wi-Fi or currently nor do I have too much spare time, so updates will be random. Next update is probably around mid/end of August.**

* * *

_**Percy Jackson— 8:30 P.M.**_

"_What did you say?" Percy whispered deathly quiet to Annabeth._

"_I told her that you were gay."_

Percy's jaw opened as though to say something, yet he didn't manage a single sound. Thalia was still in her own state of shock, her short black hair actually sticking up as though it was spiked.

"What did you just say?" she mirrored Percy in incredulity.

Annabeth appeared to be the only one who managed to keep a cool ahead despite the situation, calmly speaking as though trying to soothe her current companions, "Don't make me repeat myself."

"Are you actually out of your mind?" Thalia's voice, which had started as a whisper, had grown to a near shout by the end of her sentence. "Are you that innocent Annabeth? Is that your petty way of revenge? By renting out this room to a random man? This is pathetic. You're just saying that, aren't you? This is your way of challenging me? I never thought you of all people would stoop so low. You disgust me."

The other girl stood there silently, waiting for her once best friend to finish her rant, "Get out." The statement was so simple yet effective. The stunned look on Thalia's face said it all as she stomped out of the house, slamming the door with enough force to shake the frame.

Annabeth turned her attention back to her tenant whose face was still frozen in an expression of utter dismay. She wasn't quite sure what his problem was exactly but waited patiently for him to say something, "Well?"

Percy was ready to seethe. Was this girl that ignorant? Now, she had the nerve to question him. That was the last straw. Not only had he been threatened by a handsaw within 24 hours of moving in, now, he was being called gay. He was going to have to move out. Whether the company was near bankruptcy or not, there was no way he could reside in a house where his ego had just been hurt.

"Is that all you have to say?" he asked in a restrained tone, choking back the biting words threatening to erupt from his mouth. "Like the other girl said, is this your way to get even with her?"

Annabeth crossed her arms across her chest and looked at Percy thoughtfully, "Why are you so upset? I just discouraged Thalia from approaching you… And, well, you know what Thalia did seeing as you attended the wedding."

"What gives you the right to tell her anything about me? In fact, you know what, I've had enough with this house and all the drama brings. If I even so much as accidentally wander into another room, I'm scared that you're going to reduce me to a eunuch by threatening to saw off…." Percy's voice trailed off as he cleared his throat. "Give me your phone."

Annabeth asked in confusion, "What?"

"Your phone," he repeated, holding out his hand.

She handed it to him with some suspicion in her gray, judging eyes, "Why?"

Percy chose not to respond, touching a few numbers on the screen and pressed send, the whooshing sound signaling that the message was sent. He then took out his phone to type something quickly.

Annabeth held out her hand as he made a move to give the phone back. She glanced once at the screen to find that she had a text message from an unknown number.

Before a word could be uttered, Percy spoke up, "That's my bank account number. I would write it down, but considering how all your papers are all over the house, I don't trust you to keep it safely. Return the deposit when you have the chance. I'll move my stuff out once I see that the money has been returned."

"Excuse me?" she asked, flabbergasted

"My deposit…"

"You're leaving." It wasn't a question, but more of a statement.

"Yes."

"You just moved in yesterday."

"I'm aware."

"You took the trouble to convince me to rent out this house, and now, you're throwing it away just like that."

Percy managed to remain calm and composed while Annabeth began to look ticked off with every response. Her gray eyes flashed with irritation as Percy off-handedly responded to her questions.

"May I ask why?" she demanded.

"That's for me to know," Percy threw his car keys in the air and deftly caught them before pocketing them. He made a move towards the door which Annabeth skillfully blocked by extending her arm.

"Tell me," she tried the full force of her persuasion powers as her eyes darkened. Percy almost succumbed to the coaxing but quickly cleared his head before pushing her out of the way, a little too roughly if anyone asked Annabeth.

With a single glance back, he merely stated, "Just send the deposit back soon."

_**Percy Jackson— Next Day, 9:00 A.M.**_

After the little dispute he had had the previous night, Percy found himself wandering around the streets at nine at night, having lost his lodgings. It was partially his fault, but no man with a self-respecting ego could stay in a place where it had been wounded.

He had considered going home but immediately turned away from the thought as an image of Calypso in her black lace flashed through his head. God, that girl was so irritating. Blinking his green eyes once, Percy found himself staring at a dark, lean figure standing at his doorway.

"Sleepless night, eh?" Nico asked with a sly grin on his face. "Why are you here so early? Did she kick you out cause you weren't good in bed?"

"Shut up!" Percy winced as he stood up to examine himself in the mirror, his back hurting from sleeping in a chair.

"Then what are you doing?" he demanded, his black pupils wide in curiosity.

"I slept here last night," Percy confessed.

"What, why?! What happened to staying at psychogirl's house?"

"That's not going to work out. I'm saying that now."

Nico began to sputter as he attempted to find the right words to pacify his friend, "But, but…you…But… We worked so hard to get in. You can't just let it go like that. Think of the company, you selfish person you!"

"Nico," Percy began warningly.

But Nico was not to be abated by the tone of his boss's voice, "Percy, I thought we were friends. You can't do this to me. Do you understand what will happen to me if I lose this job? I don't think you do, man! You have some of your father's wealth remaining for you! But what do I have? You tell me."

Percy pinched the bridge of his nose, repeating what he had said earlier with a sigh, "Nico…"

But Nico interrupted him almost immediately, "Yeah, that's right. Nico will have to go back and work for his father. Do you understand the pain of running a funeral home? I don't see why my father got into the business, but it is so damn depressing. All those dead old people and all their stupid relatives squabbling over the casket as to who gets the money of the deceased. I can't go back there. I can't take it any more Perce. I'd rather go work in a coal mine. Help me my brother!"

"First, calm down. Second, stop overreacting. Third, your father runs a funeral home? Look Nico, this one thing isn't going to stop us from entering the competition. We'll just have to be original and come up with our own idea. I can still borrow from the things I've seen so far from the house. Besides, we have that big project partnered with the Saturn group. You know, the American car brand?"

Nico gave him a deep sorrowful look before looking back at his own desk on the opposite side of the glass wall. He then left silently without another word. Percy had nothing to say, rather surprised with Nico's outburst than anything.

He leaned back in his office chair, tapping his pencil on the desk silently while staring at the screen in front of him for the next hour. Percy was slightly disappointed with his design. There was something missing. He had just sketched the basic outline of the house on his software, but it was lacking the charm.

Percy was startled out of his intense scrutinizing of the drawing as the doorbell to his office rang, causing him to leap out of his chair in surprise.

Standing there was none other than Annabeth Chase, a small cardboard box enclosed in her hand. He mentally slapped himself upside the head, quickly exiting out of all the windows on his computer. He scrambled around his desk, tossing various designs of Chase Duplex into his many compartmental drawers.

Annabeth had entered having opened the door herself. She wore an apologetic look on her face as she came in, approaching the desk.

Percy immediately stood up, ushering her back out the door. Making sure none of his employees were in sight, he silently took her to the back lawn of the building, a more secluded location for the conversation. "What do you want?"

Annabeth could tell he was exasperated, so she decided to make her demand short and sweet. She held out the box in her hand, telling Percy with her gray eyes to take the box. He complied and opened it in front of her. From within the box, he pulled out a small carving.

Taking it in his hand, Percy began to examine from every angle possible, wondering why it had been given to him. "What is this?" he asked in a puzzled manner, still surprised by her visit.

Annabeth rolled her startling gray eyes once before answering, "Can't you tell?"

Percy took another glance at it before replying. "Uhmmm…a pear," he ventured a guess.

If anything, Annabeth looked affronted by the response, "Are you calling my sculpture of an owl a pear? Do the two even resemble one another?"

"Why'd you come?" Percy asked sharply.

"Excuse me?"

"I said, 'Why did you come?' Don't give me some crap about wanting to give me this owl pear thing. I told you to directly wire my deposit to my bank account, didn't I?"

"Yes…" she replied slowly.

"And that I'll move out once I get my money back?"

"Yes…"

"Pardon me if I sound rude, but what are you doing here?" he stressed the last part of the sentence carefully.

"I," Annabeth paused, thinking of the best way to phrase the sentence. She was disconcerted by the glaring green eyes boring into her own. The anger in them surprised. Annabeth knew Percy had a considerable temper about certain touchy things, but she wasn't sure what it was she had said that had upset him in this much. Was telling Thalia he was gay that big of a deal?

"It's nothing," she continued. "Just think of it as a gift."

"This isn't some weird bribe to make me your tenant again, right?" he raised his eyebrows in suspicion.

She sputtered, "What? No. Are you crazy? If I recall correctly, you were the one who forced your way into the house."

"Hey, you were desperate. Anyway, you walked all the way to give me this? In that case, I'm honored. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work to attend to."

As Percy walked away, he chuckled a little, slipping the wooden carving into his pocket. He could sense Annabeth's irritation from where he had stood. So, the girl had realized her mistake and hoped that a gift would butter him up. Fat chance.

Nothing she said could rectify the wrong done to his ego. As he opened the door to renter the building, he heard her audible mumbling, "Stupid jerk! Even after…"

Percy turned around to face her, covering the distance between them easily. Annabeth stopped talking immediately, a hopeful smile on her face. He merely grinned, "I forgot to mention. Thanks for the gift. It might be lacking in craftsmanship considering I couldn't tell it apart from a pear, but it's the thought that counts, right?"

"Or maybe you're just blind," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that?"

"So, are you moving back?"

"What?! Where'd you get that conclusion from?"

"Well…"

"Weren't you the one who said it was simply a gift? Nothing to do with the house."

"Truthfully, I need the money, and since you were willing as a tenant…" she trailed off.

"Well, I can't stand living in that house. I liked the house, but once I started living there, I've realized how much of a pain it is and how much of a constant prick in the back you are. "

Annabeth took out her full frustration on the man in front of her, "Look. I don't know what your problem is, but it is so irritating. Your constant anger management issue. First you wanted the house, now you don't. And now, you're angry at me?! Maybe you're just overly sensitive, perhaps a side-effect of your orientation…" She paused, realizing she had said something wrong after seeing the look on Percy's face.

"You want to know what the problem is? You are currently one of my biggest problems right now. The way you talk, your attitude. Everything about you bothers me, constantly prying into my private life. Who asked you to? Why don't you just leave me alone?! It's best if you would just stay out of the way and stop commenting on what goes on around me. As of today, we have no relation to one another."

As he turned to leave, Annabeth grabbed his arm. He saw her eyes had widened into silver orbs as if she had finally realized something, "That's it, isn't it?"

"That's what?" he snapped back waspishly.

"You haven't told anyone about your orientation. You have yet to come out of the closet."

Annabeth had thought she had seen the worse of Percy's anger, but it was nothing compared to what she saw in front of her now. The sea green eyes visibly darkened till they were even darker than Nico's black pupils.

His hands had turned to fists by the side of his body and his veins stood out against the tan, muscular arm, his whole harm shaking. His voice, on the other hand, was different. It was restrained, but barely controlled.

It came out as a low, struggled whisper, "Get out. Never ever mention that to me again."

* * *

**So, don't worry, the story will continue as I had said in the summary. Anyway, as I mentioned previously at the top, the next update will be at the mid/end of August when I have Wi-Fi again.**

_**The Green Eyed Marine will most likely be updated then. **_

**~TJ**


	13. Chapter 13

_**Chiron Brunner—Same Day, 10:00 A.M.**_

Chiron Brunner was startled out of his work by the short knock on his front door. He exited out of the window he had been browsing lest he be discovered and gave a brief, "Come in" to the man at the door.

What he hadn't been expecting was too see Hermes Castellan dressed up neatly in a coat, suit, and tie standing in front of him with a briefcase in his left hand.

Chiron rose up to greet his visitor with a warm hand, yet, a sense of foreboding had settled over him, "Ah, Mr. Castellan, pleasure to see you."

"Pleasure's mine, Mr. Brunner," the other man replied with a grin stretching from ear to ear, still gripping Chiron's hand tightly, unwilling to let go.

"Do take a seat," Chiron gestured at the open seat with his free hand while attempting to release his other hand from Hermes tight-hold grasp.

Hermes finally let go of Chiron's hand as he plopped down unceremoniously on to the leather office chair opposing Chiron's.

"My condolences," Chiron stated.

"For?"

"Your son's marriage was…how shall I put it…rather disrupted," he wasn't sure quite what tone to use for an event still raw in everyone's mind.

"Oh, that. It was rather unfortunate circumstances, but nothing can be done now," Hermes sported a look of pity but quickly recovered. Hermes looked rather dismissive as he spoke as though the failed wedding was nothing more than spilled milk.

"So," Chiron began again, not knowing what to say, "How may I help you this morning, Mr. Castellan?"

"Ah, I'm glad that I caught a hold of you today. I heard you were launching a new project shortly," The man cocked his eyebrow knowingly at Chiron. "So, what's the scoop?"

"So you've heard," Chiron merely restated, leaning back into his chair in disappointment. He should have guessed the reason to Hermes' visit. He had been hoping to keep the news a secret a little bit longer before he could officially release it to the press. But Chiron was no fool; he knew that Hermes Castellan was known for his sly ways, using his moles to dig up information beforehand.

"Who hasn't?" Hermes let out a brief rhetorical chuckle as if it was the most obvious fact in the world.

"Indeed, who hasn't," Chiron repeated darkly.

"So…" Hermes paused, looking abashed in a sense as he spoke, "About the project. Whadya say about letting my company put your worries to rest? We'll handle it all. Just give us the word, and we'll get it done."

"Excuse me?" Chiron was taken back, the incredulity clear in his tone.

Hermes smiled slightly, "There's no need to be like that Chiron. If you're worried about…" Hermes looked around furtively side to side before pulling his briefcase on to the desk. He pushed it towards Chiron with a grin on his face. "Take a look and tell me if that's alright with you."

A shocked Chiron Brunner returned the briefcase, pushing it back to its owner, "Mr. Castellan, as you should know, this project is to be won through eliminations and a panel of judges. It is meant to be competitive to bring out the best in everyone and bring forward a refreshing outlook of ideas. It is not meant to be won by bribes!"

_**Percy Jackson— 10:47 A.M.**_

After the rather unpleasant conversation with his landlady— now ex-landlady, Percy's day had only gotten worse. Calypso had found it the opportune moment to pay Percy a visit at his office. The conversation that had ensued was just a nuisance in Percy's eyes.

"Percy," she had whined, "Tell me where you're living!"

"No," he said with finality.

"Why not?"

"Cause I'm busy and don't have time to entertain you should you stop by."

"I have an idea," she replied brightly, "Why don't I move in to your new apartment with you?"

"Absolutely not."

"BUT WHY?!"

Percy feared another emotional outburst from her should he let the topic continue, "Cause I said so."

"But I can cook for you and everything! You know, practice being your wife?"

Percy didn't know what disgusted him more. He couldn't tell whether it was the idea of being married to Calypso or eating any food cooked by her that made him want to gag.

"You know what my mom would say if she found out we were living together alone."

"But we're engaged!"

"No, we aren't," he reminded her not all that gently, starting to lead her towards the door.

"We will be!" she said, blowing the hair out of her face angrily as she left.

After managing to push her out of his office, he finally decided to pay a visit to Chiron Brunner on account of the proposal the man had made. He dragged Nico along for company.

He walked through the glass door entrance to Chiron Brunner's building. Just as he made his way to the receptionist, Percy heard the slight 'ahem' of someone trying to capture his attention. As he turned around, he found himself facing Luke Castellan, smirk and all.

"Percy, bud, surprise to see you here."

"I could say the same," Percy replied monotonously, quickly piecing together why the heir to Hermes Inc. was in the Olympian Architect firm building. The two stared at one another briefly. In those few seconds, but looked like they were in silent feud to unmask the intentions of the other. Nico was slightly perturbed and disturbed by the sudden hostility. Had it not been for a brief interruption from a bystander, the two would have bore holes in one another from the intensity of their glares.

"Percy?" a surprised voice called out.

"Thalia?" Percy had turned to face the black haired girl, her electric blue eyes eager to see him.

"You two know each other?!" Luke asked with disbelief. Nico too showed some perplexity in his expression.

"I work here," she cleared the confusion clearly shown on Percy's face while completely ignoring Luke's little outbreak.

"Ah, I see. So, Mr. Brunner's secretary?"

"Something of that sort," she chuckled as if Percy had just told her a hilarious joke. Meanwhile, her freezing attitude towards Luke had not changed. In fact, she had yet to acknowledge her ex- fiancé's presence. "Are you waiting for Chiron?" she asked.

"Yeah, just had a few questions."

"Hold up. How the hell do you two know each other," Luke barged in once more into the conversation, making him a third wheel of sorts.

"Anyway," Percy interrupted, "I should get going. Mr. Brunner was expecting me."

Thalia was all smiles, "Of course. And I'll have to apologize."

"Apologize?"

"For disturbing you last night," she said coyly, not glancing at Luke.

"About last night, it was…" Percy trailed off, being cut off by Luke.

Luke held up his hands as though defending himself from something, "Hold up. You two— you did what last night?"

Thalia covered her smile briefly while Percy smiled in amusement in Luke's shocked face.

Percy continued, once again ignoring the younger Castellan, "Don't worry about it. You came across as a rather confident lady; it certainly made an impression on me."

"You'll have to excuse my behavior last night. I'm not always quite like that."

Percy wasn't sure who sported the more comical look on their face: Nico or Luke. If either of their jaws dropped any further…

"What the hell did you do to Thalia, you dog?" he was on the verge of rage.

"Well, that's a secret, isn't it?" Percy winked once at Thalia who played along.

The next thing Percy knew was Luke's face right up in his, his collar clenched by Luke's white knuckled hands in anger. Percy used his free hands to easily pry off Luke's, turned him around, and pushed him back to his previous position.

He then readjusted the bag on his shoulder and smoothed down his shirt.

He could sense Luke's anger slowly creepy in as his normally white face became tinted with a reddish hue. His fists were clenched up into tight balls by his hands. It took all his self-restraint, and the sudden arrival of his father, for Luke to control himself.

"Percy?!" Hermes looked equally shocked as his son to see the head of his rival company. Just when he thought he couldn't get any more surprised, Mr. Castellan was shocked to see his ex-daughter-in-law-to-be standing alongside Percy as they shook hands in good-bye.

"Luke," he turned to his son, "I do hope you are getting along well with Percy. After all, we must be more lenient to those who are less fortuned." He flashed Percy a grin as though he were advising him.

Just at that moment, Chiron Brunner descended the flight of stairs. Hermes clapped Percy hard on the back, "Alright boy, you understand?" He turned back once to smile at Chiron with a fake grin on his face.

"Oh, you know Percy?" Chiron questioned pleasantly.

"Know him? I practically raised the boy. Ah yes, his father and I were old friends. He's a second son to me. After the sad, sudden death of his father, it was I who had taken him under my wing to nurture him like family."

Percy remained silent at the blatantly false statements. No, Hermes had only brought ruin to his father and company. It had been Hermes' treachery that had brought the downfall of his father's company, and eventually, his father's demise as well. But the anger raged on within him at the injustice of Hermes' words. He remembered the day after his father's funeral… Luke holding Hermes' hand as the two walked out of the car to take ownership of the late Poseidon Jackson's house, leaving Percy and his mother to look for a new home.

"Ah, how kindhearted of you," Chiron sympathized.

"Yes, now Chiron, I'll be back later to discuss some proposals for the art museum."

"Pardon me?"

"The contract you handed us last week for the Ancient Greek Museum."

"Oh, of course," Chiron didn't look all that enthusiastic at the prospect of meeting Hermes once more. He then turned to Percy with a complete change of attitude, a genuine smile bright on his face, "Percy, what can I do for you?"

_**Hermes Castellan—11:40 A.M.**_

"He had the nerve to reject the money?!" Luke intoned. "What, how?"

"I don't know, but I have a feeling Jackson's involved somehow. Did you see how he was already there? The news for the project hasn't even been released yet."

"What do you suggest?" Luke demanded his father.

"Get her back."

"Who?"

"Get Thalia back. We're going to need her to win favors from Brunner."

"You want to use Thalia."

"She'll benefit too when she gets married to you," Hermes reasoned.

"She just broke it off. There is no way in hell she'd come near me."

"That's your problem. Either help me or I'm firing you."

_**Percy Jackson— 12:15 P.M.**_

After a small debriefing and clearing up some confusion from Chiron, Percy and Nico headed back to the blue Challenger. Chiron, Percy was certain, had spilled more than he should have to the two young men.

But no loss, they would go on with the competition. Not only to show Hermes Inc., but to everyone that they were up for the game.

They had barely touched the highway when Percy's phone rang. He swore deeply when he realized his Bluetooth was somewhere in the back seat.

"Hey man, could you grab that for me?"

Nico picked up the phone and paused briefly:

"What?! YOU CAN'T DO THAT!"

"…"

"No, you can't back out. We made that clear in the contract."

"…"

"Yes, it was right there. I don't care if you're getting cold feet. Put them in the bathtub or something. You can't back out."

"…"

"What about the deposit?"

"…"

"Do you know anything about business?! It was non-refundable."

"…"

"What?! You're going to file a case if we don't return the deposit? Damn you're stingy. It was only 100 grand…"

Nico abruptly cut the phone, sighing deeply as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "Perce, we have a problem."

"What is it now?"

"Well…you know the big break we got with Saturn, the car company?"

"Yeah?"

"It's gone."

"Why?" Percy asked, almost emotionlessly.

"They decided against opening more branches. Their company is bankrupt. In fact, they're planning on selling it."

"So…"

"So?" Nico questioned. "What now?"

"Nothing. We proceed like we did before."

"Man, I don't want to pressure you, but this resort deal that Brunner offered. Winning that means saving our own company from bankruptcy. If we lose this opportunity to Hermes Inc…"

"We won't," Percy said without hesitation.

"How do you know?"

"Trust me?"

"This isn't just about you Percy but the future of the entire company. Keep that mind."

"What do you suggest we do?" Percy stopped at the red light, turning to face Nico skeptically.

"Don't lose."

"Thanks for the advice. I wasn't planning on it."

"No, seriously though. You know the style he wants, and you have the means at your disposal. We need a certain win from this competition."

"Meaning?"

"You gotta move back in with psycho-girl Annabeth."

* * *

**Since classes are restarting soon, updates will be a little difficult to come by quickly.**

_**The Green Eyed Marine**_** will be continued when I have inspiration for it.**

**Till then, read, fave, follow, and review. 200****th**** reviewer gets a special shout-out, but it'd be great if we passed that mark. **

**~TJ**


	14. Chapter 14

**Three weeks, eh? Anyway, as promised, shout-out to If You Give A Duck Chocolate for being the 200****th**** reviewer and for having an awesome name.**

**To VampireRide: I feel you man. So, how about from now on, shout-out for every 50****th**** review?**

**Disclaimer: Not mine.**

* * *

_**Percy Jackson—**_

Percy stared at Nico like it was some cruel twist of fate. The other man had to be joking right now. It wasn't some joke, was it?

"Am I on candid camera right now?" he asked Nico bluntly, looking around the car as if searching for hidden cameras.

"What?" the younger man looked like Percy had gone slightly insane.

"This is a joke, right?"

Nico looked at him pitiful, placing a hand on his shoulder, "I wish it were so."

Percy pushed the hand off quickly while Nico continued his pathetic speech, "Just my luck. To be unemployed on Friday the 13th. I always knew this day was destined to be the death of me."

"Lucky for you, your father owns a funeral home," Percy said under his breath. Nico shot him a nasty glare. Percy, ignoring this, continued, "Look, no one's going to lose their jobs. I'll figure something out. So don't panic. Don't tell anyone. Above all, stay away from Leo. If the word gets to him, I'll have two overly dramatic employees at my feet."

"Hey!" Nico protested weakly.

"Look, point is that I'll get it solved. I'm not going to let my employees go unemployed because of my personal relations. This is my issue and not for you to worry about it."

"Unless I'm jobless," Nico inserted in the middle.

"Shut the hell up, di Angelo," Percy barked in frustration. "Fine, I'll give that Chase girl one more chance, but if she blows it, that's it. I don't care about the consequences, but if it involves staying her after a wounded pride…"

"My…"

"I get it Nico. You will not go unemployed."

"Wounded pride?" Nico questioned.

"Don't ask," Percy's eyes narrowed, darkening by the second. He would never divulge what Annabeth had said to him to anyone.

_**Annabeth Chase, 3:00 P.M.—**_

Annabeth was surprised to hear her doorbell ring at this time of day. She wasn't expecting any guests, and frankly, she wasn't in the mood to after what had happened earlier that day. She had been sitting around, channeling her anger into her sketches.

Some company had contacted her around lunch to discuss an interview later for a position as a contracting agent. He had said he would call her back later once verifying some of the recommendations and paperwork required before the meeting.

She opened her door slightly, peering outside to find none other than her ex-tenant, Mr. Percy Jackson. next to him, carrying a rather large suitcase stood his boyfriend, Nico di Angelo. Nico had an uncharacteristically happy grin on his fact despite the fact he was carrying someone else's luggage.

Without offering any explanation, Percy pushed the door and entered with Nico trailing behind him with the suitcase. He entered his room, directing Nico to toss the suitcase on the bed before reemerging from the room. Annabeth stood with her arms crossed, demanding an explanation.

The explanation she got was curt and took her back.

"I decided that I would stay until I got my deposit wired back," he said without the hint of any emotion. It was as though he were doing her a service. Annabeth was rather fed-up with his condescending attitude more than anything.

"So, you think you can just walk back in?" she asked, feeling a sense of déjà vu having asked Thalia the exact same question a few days previously.

"Isn't that what you begged me to do?" he shot back with a smirk, knowing that he had won. Annabeth cursed those sea green eyes that bore back at her with contempt. Ignoring him, she turned to his partner with scorn, "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

He cowered under the steely grey eyes that glowered at him, "Yes m'am." For better measure, he saluted her once.

Annabeth heard Percy chuckle, turning around to face him when he called out, "See ya later Nico. Thanks for helping."

A muffled, "No problem," came from the other side of the now closing door.

Percy was leaning against a wooden table centerpiece in the center of the living room space. His legs crossed one another and his arms on either side of him. He gave the room an appraising look with some disdain showing up on his face.

"Well?" he demanded.

"Well what? What do you need, your highness?" Annabeth shot him an equal look of irritation. Why did she have to be stuck up with this jerk of all people?

Percy gestured to the ground. From what Annabeth could see, there wasn't much that she saw wrong. Percy gingerly picked up something from the ground with the tip of a pencil, an expression of disgust clear on his face. She saw the shudder visibly pass through his body as he moved it away from him.

Annabeth's face turned a beet red when she realized what he had in his hand. She quickly grabbed it. It was one of her red bras. How it had gotten there was beyond her knowledge. Maybe it had fallen when she had taken her clothes to the laundry. How she hadn't noticed was another issue.

"Are you going to bother picking this up?" Percy asked, now plopping himself down on the couch with his feet up on the table, the TV remote in his hand.

"Get your feet off that table. I made that," she asked of him. He shot her an amused glance but complied as he flipped through the channels, "So?"

"What?"

"Are you picking it up?"

"Picking what up?" Annabeth shot back in frustration. The guy had been there for less than ten minutes, and here he was ordering her around already. She was fine with the way the house was, and if he had an issue, he could fix it himself.

"Tidy up the house," he stated simply, as though it were no big deal.

"Excuse me?" the incredulity evident in her tone.

"You heard me," his green eyes were dancing in enjoyment as he riled her up. "This house. Now. It's a mess."

"This is my house, and I'd rather have my things were they are accessible and not stored in some corner."

"Tidiness is a virtue."

"Says who? It's more convenient to have my papers were they are rather than to disturb and rearrange them."

He then pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket which he then tossed up to her. She caught in deftly, examining it. It was their initial agreement paper terms when he had entered the house.

"Paragraph 3, line 4," he pointed out, still not bothering to get up from the couch, his eyes trained on the screen.

Annabeth's eyes quickly scanned to the mentioned area, her hands grasping the paper a little more tightly than necessary. It was one of his imposed conditions that she hadn't expected him to carry out. What guy kept his house neat anyway? She was reminded of a Macklemore quote, _"I thought I was gay because I kept my room neat and straight." _

Well, that explained that…

"You expect me to clean this up?" she asked rhetorically.

He answered anyway, "Obviously." The sneer reminded her of Snape from Harry Potter. He was yet to budge from his seat, so Annabeth assumed he wasn't going to lift a hand to help at all. His reasoning would be that since he hadn't created the mess, there was no need for him.

The next hour went by slowly as Annabeth restacked her papers in an orderly fashion. They weren't always all that messy. She had just been caught up with the whole Luke and Thalia issue to pay much attention to her house.

She placed all the power tools in their respective boxes, stowing them away for later use. As for the clothes, she tossed them in the hamper, resolving to redo her laundry as the pile had grown considerably in the last week.

"Finished," she announced, taking a seat across from him. He stood up wordlessly to go over to the nearest table near her workshop room. He lifted his pointer finger and with one swift motion, he ran it across the table. When he reached the end, he held up the finger now coated in a fine coat of dust, sawdust to be exact.

He tilted his head as though challenging her. She walked to the table, raising her hands defensively. "I use the saw every day. Obviously there's going to be dust!"

"When was the last time you dusted or even gave this place a wash?" he asked, now looking at the window blinds for signs of dust mites.

Without giving her a chance to reply, he opened a nearby cabinet, digging around for a moment before moving on to another drawer. At last, he found what he had been searching for. He held it out to Annabeth who took it gingerly, her small nose scrunching up.

"A rag?" she asked skeptically.

"Don't just stand around."

Percy personally took interest in Annabeth's cleaning duty to make sure a single speck hadn't been missed in the process. Under his watchful eye, Annabeth was forced to clean each individual blind.

"Ah, you missed a spot," he would point out in a semi-sing-song voice. He was becoming a nuisance, a painful nuisance. "While you're at it, you should mop the floor." Annabeth shot him a look of pure irritation before turning back to clean the remainder of the window blind.

It was past 5:30 by the time she had finished the blinds alone. Percy, bless his kind heart, had taken the trouble to hand her a mop and bucket from one of the closets.

"Why thank you kind sir," she curtsied mockingly. It went past his thick head as he simply told her to hurry up.

"Want to help?" she asked hopefully, brushing the blond hair out of her face.

Percy looked affronted, "Me? I'm the tenant. You're the landlady. Besides, I have to get ready for dinner."

"How long could you need for that?" Annabeth muttered under her breath so Percy wouldn't hear.

Annabeth picked up the mop, realizing she had never used one with her wooden floors. She had always preferred to stick to the all-purpose vacuum cleaner. Plunging the mop into the bucket of water and solution, she made a clean swipe of the floor, marveling at the now distinct strata of the clean and unclean floor. Percy gave her a victorious smile as he proved his point, his green eyes twinkling.

Annabeth steeled her eyes again before making the sweeping motion before Percy stopped her. He gestured for the mop in exasperation at her careless attitude. "You have to squeeze out the water before you put it on the floor again." He demonstrated once for her, his muscles rippled as he stretched. Annabeth admired the well-muscled torso, not paying much attention to what he was saying.

She shook her head, clearing her head of such thoughts. He had a bemused expression on his face as he held out the mop to her, waiting for her to take it from him. She grabbed it rather roughly from him, blushing fiercely underneath.

To hide her embarrassment, she continued to mop the floor when she felt a hand touch her arm. A shock nearly passed through her at the close proximity. She steadied herself, steeling her nerves as she looked at him. "What now?"

"The motion. It's all wrong. It has to be a continuous flow like a smooth arc. Your action is all choppy and just getting water everywhere. Watch me." With that he put one arm on the handle of the mop, just one hand in front of where Annabeth's hand was. With his other hand, he placed it on the portion of the body away from the mop, dangerously close to her waist.

Annabeth exhaled deeply, having never been this close to him. Before she had a chance to realize what was going on, he made a swift motion of the arm with the mop.

"Just like that," his arms were already back to their original crossed position across his chest. Annabeth was stupefied momentarily.

"You know what? This seems like this is going to take long," he judged from her expression. "Just hand me the mop. I'll finish it."

He grabbed it from her outstretched hands proceeding to mop down the remainder of the house. Annabeth watched carefully as he wiped the house. His focus was entirely on what he was doing, not the least bit distracted from what it was in front of her.

Sure he was pretentious ass, but there was a method to madness and she watched it play out in how he diligently he mopped the floor. Not a single bead of sweat was seen. Annabeth was sure he wiped it off when she wasn't looking. She on the other hand was covered in sweat and dust. She would need to take a shower later.

And just as he had said, he finished the entirety of the duplex in 30 minutes tops. He handed her the mop and bucket before going into his room. He wasn't much of conversationalist, was he?

Feeling hungry and realizing the time was almost 7:00 P.M., Annabeth checked in her freezer, looking for a possible Lean Cuisine to satiate her hunger. She didn't have the energy required to cook a full-fledged meal.

What had Percy said? That he had to get ready for dinner? As in he was going out. With who? Nico? Annabeth shuddered a little. She could just run down to the Target or Walgreens across the block and pick up a few frozen dishes that she could simply microwave and eat,

She made quick work of dinner. Going in and exiting the shop within twenty minutes (a personal record when it came to Target for her). She popped the dish into the microwave; she realized a little pathetically how excited she was to eat frozen lasagna.

Annabeth hadn't noticed Percy, so she assumed he had already gone out for dinner after changing. Once she had inhaled in the lasagna in practically one breath, she decided that it was best time for a bath.

She gathered her garments from the closet, procuring a towel hanging on the rack. She removed the contacts too and placed them in the case before heading towards the bathroom.

She opened the wooden door, thinking how she would need to put in a lock system soon now that there was a man living in the house. As Annabeth swung the door open, it revealed a man in his full glory.

His long black hair was slicked away from his handsome face. The face itself was dotted with water droplets, indicating that he had just been in the shower. His sea green eyes were clear and shining, a contrast against his tanned, youthful face.

Annabeth's eyes trailed down involuntarily. She had been right about imagining those chiseled abs. Sure he was a prick, but he was a prick with a great bod. She almost caught herself drooling.

Her eyes wandered below the six-pack to where the towel was…Or where she thought it was.

Annabeth's eyes widened in shock, her hand had to cover her mouth at that moment to prevent herself from shrieking. Percy had just taken notice of her from the high pitched noise she had made. His face, which had been turned to face the mirror to look for razor cuts, turned back to the front. His face mirrored hers immediately.

He had just stepped out of the shower moments beforehand, beginning to wrap the towel around when he was distracted by a stinging sensation on his cheek. He had just begun to examine it when a loud yelp of terror shook him from the mirror.

He immediately wrapped the towel around his lower torso, his cheeks a deep watermelon red which Annabeth only matched with her own tomato red. Perhaps, she hadn't seen anything…wistful thinking.

She backed away slowly with her arms up in the air by her sides. There was no way she hadn't seen anything.

Percy, on the other hand, was sure of one thing. Annabeth Chase had just seen him in full nude.

* * *

**Almost 3000 words.**

**Yes, Annabeth and Percy are OoC. It's an AU, and that's how it will be.**

**So, I hope you haven't forgotten this story. Make sure to fave, follow, and review.**

**I don't proofread my stories. I always publish the first draft since I don't have the patience/time to go through it. Find any mistakes, let me know.**

**Also, like I said, every 50****th**** milestone review gets a shout-out. I don't care if you hate/like this story. You are entitled to your own opinions, and that's what the review box is for. I'd just prefer if you didn't cuss at me for being a bastard/bitch. I've gotten a few of those…Anyway, review.**

**~TJ**

**Also, when is HoH coming out? I lost track...**


End file.
